Pathways
by TheBaeTide
Summary: Rick's group made it to ASZ, and Rick still ended up with a cut throat attitude, despite not losing as many people along the way. The group still manage to fall into the Saviors clutches, but that might not be a terrible thing for some. AU. Walkers. Rick is Rick. Michonne is life.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1:

Michonne strolled through the compound, tired and hot. Her katana felt heavy and her backpack seemed to weigh a ton though it was near enough empty. Evening was fast approaching and everyone was locking up for the day and heading home. She couldn't wait to find herself home as well. As tired as she was, she still power walked, as she was in no mood for any small talk with the other residents, though she was usually polite and friendly.

She walked up the steps to the building and shoved the door open. She was greeted to the sound of men laughing heartily and cigar smoke slipping from beneath the first door in the hall. She rolled her eyes and went straight upstairs, uninterested in the joke they shared.

As soon as she was in the comfort of her bedroom she stripped off her clothing and headed straight for the bathroom, stepping straight in the shower. The water was lukewarm but she didn't mind, it cooled her down. She stuck her head beneath the stream and lost herself in the luxury.

Her time in the shower was something she had come to love. It was a place she could block out everything that went wrong in the world, and even the things that went wrong behind the walls. She looked forward to it as she could hide in there for as long as she wished, without a care, usually. It was a regiment that she had held on to from her old life, and as she had learned, it was difficult to do such a thing when resources were low.

"You didn't want to tell me your back?"

She gripped her towel tighter as she returned to her bedroom, shocked to see the familiar face on her bed, "You scared me"

"Well shit, didn't think that was possible?", He smiled, his eyes flashing with amusement.

She headed over to her dresser, "We didn't find as much as the last time but… it will do"

"I told you we don't need to go out and scavenge anymore 'Chonne. We're setting up 'trades' now"

She pulled out a fresh pair of underwear and looked at him, "What's happened since I've been gone?"

"A lot. A fucking lot. We lost about thirty men. Some groups been taking them out all over the place"

"What?", She frowned at him, stepping forward.

"We caught up with them. I only killed one of theirs but that's all it took for them to fall apart", He smirked, "We're trading with them now actually"

She winced at him.

"They give us half there shit, and we won't kill 'em"

Her eyebrows shot up, "What?"

"Don't look at me like that 'Chonne. The deserve it-"

"I thought we don't do things like that?"

"We don't. But when you're going around killing innocent people, you lose that privilege. They lost theirs"

She shook her head as she grabbed her night clothes off the chair and walked back into the bathroom, slamming the door.

"Come on! Don't be like that! I agree with this whole peaceful shit you're trying to do but not everyone else does! These assholes need to get with the new world order"

She stared at the door as she listened to him.

"You know I don't like to murder for no reason, in fact, I was pretty fucking nice to kill only one of theirs, when I could have killed them all. We won't kill anyone else unless they're a threat, alright?"

She pursed her lips as she tried to sense how genuine he was being with her. She cracked the door to look at him.

"I can't have my right hand woman mad at me now, can I?", He charmed, his dark eyebrows raising.

"Promise me, Negan"

"I fucking promise. Pinkie promise"

She nodded slowly.

"Why don't you get changed in front of me? I've seen it bef-"

She shut the door in his face.

"Nice! Really fucking nice 'Chonne!"

She smirked as she began to put on her clothes.

"Hey, we have our first collection tomorrow, so be ready at noon alright?"

"Fine!", She called back, pulling on her tank top.

She knew he had a problem grasping her stance on killing, but she would do her best to enforce it. With the world over run with the dead, the last thing they needed was to kill everyone that they didn't like. Though she could understand his point, as this other group had killed many of her own people. She couldn't say she wished them well after that.

She truly valued her friendship with Negan, despite their differences. The two of them had been together for so long, that she'd dread the day something happened to him. They had built the Savior's compound together and we're doing their best to run it, but as it got bigger, he took to being the frontman, while she preferred to roam around, looking for survivors and inventory. They still worked incredibly well together when she was home and she while she would never admit it to his smug face, she'd miss his company often.

The next day she was ready for their collection after having a good night's sleep. Negan wasn't in the home while she got ready, but his wives were. She avoided them like always, as that was also something they butted heads on. While both women were nice enough, she couldn't bare the idol conversation they often carried. They were the type that liked to stay at home and look after their husband, which wasn't particularly a problem in Michonne's eyes, she just found it hard to relate to.

Five cars and a large truck set out around lunch time when they were all ready. She rode in the third car, in the back with Negan, barely listening to their conversation. Some of the men had a tendency to share crass jokes, and Negan often loved to partake in such crude discussions, much to her displeasure. She chose to drown herself in the scenery on the other side of her window. Most of the time she was looking out for potential danger, but other times she just enjoyed to see the overgrown grass swaying in the breeze, or the leaves in the trees rustle. She missed seeing birds scatter from the branches when something spooked them, but that sight had soon became a rare one.

"They call their little camp Alexandria. Heard they had a pretty nice set up", Negan snorted as he looked over at her.

"They do. It's pretty big, high walls", Dwight added from the passenger seat, "Think I saw crops in there when we were checking it out"

"Who's in charge?", Michonne asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Some little killer country boy with a big attitude", Negan answered wiggling his eyebrows at him.

"I didn't see that attitude when we had them on their knees", Dwight chuckled, his shoulders bouncing.

"Don't write him off just yet. I have a feeling he's gonna be a pain in the ass"

Michonne squinted through the entrance as she noticed a grey, tall fence in the distance, hidden by a few burnt up homes, "This it?"

"Yep. It is. I hope they got our package ready"

Her eyes darted all over the place as she took in the area. She understood how they could go unnoticed for so long, as the place was quite discreet. She hated how excited Negan seemed to get when he was ready to intimidate someone. He sat forward with a deceptively warm smile on his face.

"Good thing I brought Lucille. Don't want them to get any ideas again"

Her eyes fell to the bat that he held between his legs. She never knew she could hate an item so much, but she through the same could be said for her sword as they had both seen the end of the living.

They parked up in a single file in front of the gates, and Michonne got out in time with everybody else.

"Knock, knock!", Wade called from beside the first vehicle.

She could barely stand the tall, slender, moustached man, but knew he could be resourceful, so she would often ignore him.

One of the gates that blocked the view of the camp opened, and a young brunette male opened the door.

"And who might you be?", Wade questioned, "We didn't see you at the party last week?"

"Spencer", He answered quickly, his jaw moving around nervously.

"Well Spencer, we're here to pick a few things up. You mind opening this door for us?"

The other male sighed, "Rick's not back yet"

"We'll be sure to leave him at message", Wade stepped closer to the gate, "Now if you don't mind, we have at tight schedule to run"

Spencer hovered for a moment, before finally obliging. He pushed open the second gate and they all slowly filed in, "The pantry's that way"

"Rick the leader?", Michonne asked Negan in and hushed tone.

He rested his bat on his shoulder as he walked beside her, "He is. Pretty ballsy for him not to be here, don't you think?"

"He obviously had other important matters to tend to".

Negan snickered, "I'd think this would be pretty important"

Her eyes resumed their darting motions, taking in the new surroundings. She was very impressed with the set up, and could easily imagine living there herself.

"Can I talk to you, somewhere more private?"

Both Negan and Michonne looked Spencer head to toe as he approached them, a questioning look on their faces.

"Sure you can sport. Just make sure your people know how to bag up my groceries while we're gone", Negan teased as he watched his men.

"Tobin will handle that", Spencer nodded, looking over at the other tall man further down the street.

The other man gave him a single nod back, before looking in the other direction and pointing for the saviours.

"Alright then. Take us to your office"

Michonne and Negan both followed Spencer over to a home in the centre of the little town, where he led them up the steps and into a grand hallway.

"Pretty fucking nice ain't it?", Negan nudged her as he looked at the book shelf, "You love to read, don't you 'Chonne? I bet they have a whole goddamn library from you somewhere around here"

"I wanted to talk to you... about Rick", Spencer explained, his chest rising and falling quickly.

"What about our little killer cowboy?", Negan's eyes scanned up and down the shelf.

Michonne looked out the window with narrowed eyes as she made sure they were safe to be away from the others.

"My parents set this place up… they're the ones that came up with the idea and ever since Rick and the group got here… he just ran it into the ground...this isn't what they wanted. This isn't what the Alexandria Safe Zone was meant to be"

Neither Negan or Michonne turned to look at him, but Negan still spoke, "And what was it supposed to be?"

"A safe zone. A place for people to come and live normal lives, away from the walkers. We were trying to rebuild a society, with schools and… a church. We wanted to create something like before"

"And what did Rick do wrong here?"

"He's trying to turn us all into killers… were not all killers. We're not all like him. We used to have only a select few go out on runs because they knew what they were doing, but now he expects us all to take our turn… he expects us all to be ready to kill and stand watch and… He's just a bad leader, and that's why I think you should put me in charge"

Negan and Michonne slowly turned to face the young, agitated man.

"I should put you in charge? And how would I do that?"

Spencer swallowed, "You kill Rick"

Negan looked at Michonne and wiggled his eyebrows at her, "You hear this 'Chonne?"

Michonne's face showed nothing but disappointment at his request.

"I can lead this place better and I can make sure you-"

"Oh shut up, pin dick", Negan scoffed as he dropped his bat from his shoulder, "You're really quite the little weasel, aren't you?"

Spencer frowned at him, his eyes wide and confused.

"You have to kill to survive in this world now, don't you get that? You wanted to sit behind these fucking walls and twiddle your thumbs for the rest of your soon to be short life?"

"I just don't agree-"

"You know what I hate?", Negan stepped closer to him, "I hate little pricks like you. You remind me of that other greasy, son of a bitch, what's his name? Gregory? Ugh, I hate that guy. Another little worm like you!"

Michonne could see that Spencer was tempted to take a step back but didn't.

"You can't kill Rick yourself? You scare of him? That why you came to me? You thought I'd do your dirty work for you, huh?", Negan swung his bat back and forth beside his leg.

"I thought you would-"

Spencer's words were cut short by the knife Negan stuck in to his stomach. Michonne inhaled sharply as he male slowly doubled over.

"At least Rick is trying to help you assholes. I would have left a rat like you to rot in his own shit", Negan smirked, pulling the knife from his abdomen. He lifted his bat high on the air after pocketing the other weapon, and he smiled, "Batter up!"

He swung the bat down on Spencer's head, sending him to the ground with a loud crack. He brought the bat back up one more time before dropping it again on his skull.

"That's enough!", Michonne called to him sternly.

He tilted his head at Spencer's leaking, twitching body, and sighed, "Well, guess he wasn't paying attention in Rick's killing classes"

Michonne tufted at him as she stepped over Spencer's body, heading to the front door with Negan behind her. While she didn't agree with Negan's brutality, she had to admit that it was a poor choice on his behalf. If there was one thing that he dear friend didn't like, it was sneaky behaviour.

They left the door open, purely so no one got any surprises when they went to the dead man's home. The other saviours where carrying items back and forth to the truck they brought. A small group of people where at the front gate, and Michonne assumed it was the Alexandria residents.

"Rick! How nice of you to finally join us!", Negan bellowed, a devilish grin appearing on his face.

Michonne narrowed her eyes at the group of people, quickly trying to work out which one was Rick. She soon found out, as the lean, bearded man began walking towards them. His strut was cool and calm, though his expression told another story. His belt donned a silver gun that he kept his hand near, for obvious reasons. Her gaze travelled the length of him, until his eyes met with hers and something lit within her. She swiftly averted her eyes to the scene behind him, and almost frowned at her sudden nervousness.

"Heard you went out? Busy itinerary?", Negan mocked as they approached each other.

"Where were you?", His southern accent was thick and firm.

"Your boy Spencer took us on a little tour of his living room"

Rick's eyes narrowed, "Where is he?"

Negan looked back over his shoulder at the home, then at Rick, "He'll probably be out soon"

"He's dead", Michonne deadpanned, not in the mood for Negan's guessing games.

Rick's eyes slid over to hers as his brow furrowed, then back at Negan.

"Oh 'Chonne you ruined the surprise-", Negan's head jerked back as Rick's fist caught him in the cheek, sending the man stumbling back.

Michonne withdrew her sword and held it an inch beneath Rick's neck before he could step forward, "Don't."

Rick's eyes met with hers again, his hand on the handle of his colt python.

"The fucking killer farmer packs quite a punch", Negan chuckled as he stood up straight, "I'll let you have that one purely because you don't know why we killed him, but the next time you try that, she'll have your fucking head"

Michonne slowly lowered her sword, but kept both hands on the handle.

"Don't let her dainty appearance fool you, she's one of the most lethal killers I know",

Rick's eyes dropped to her sword, then back up to her face, and she alternated her gaze again.

"That little shit Spence wanted me to kill you, so I killed him. I thought I'd be doing you a favour", Negan studier Rick's facial expression and rolled his eyes, "He said you were a piece of shit leader, he could do better and blah, shit, blah"

Rick took a step back, looking only a little confused.

"It's true", Michonne co-signed, though not looking him in the eyes.

Rick ran his tongue across his bottom lip as his gaze pin balled between the two of them, "You should have let me deal with it"

"Well I would have but you weren't here now, were you?", Negan wrested the still bloody bat to his shoulder as he shook his head, "Not even a thank you. You sir, are an asshole"

Michonne looked behind Rick as the last box was taken to the truck and the remaining Saviors waited just beside the gates, "We're done"

"Looks like you're gonna have to give us a better tour next time", Negan barged past him as he began to walk towards the entrance, "I'd also like a fresh pot of coffee waiting for me. Some herbal shit for the lady here"

Michonne scowled at the back of his head as she sheathed her sword. When she realised Rick was watching her, she straightened up, and soon began marching behind Negan. She didn't know what it was that knocked her equilibrium off course, but she knew she didn't like it. She didn't like it at all.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2:

"Do you believe him?"

Rick rested his hands on his sides as he looked over Spencer's body, the fresh head wound to stop him from reanimating still pouring blood on to the hardwood floors.

He finally met Daryl's gaze, "I do"

"I'm not sure if I do… I mean, Spencer was a good guy-", Glenn began as he moved from the window.

"I believed the woman he was with. She was pretty straight forward when she told me he was dead", Rick's eyes scanned over the room aimlessly as he wondered what to do next.

"Even if he wanted you dead, why wouldn't they just leave him for us to deal with?", Glenn continued.

Rick turned towards the door, no longer wishing to discuss the man that wanted to sacrifice him for his own cause.

He had never had any personal problem with Spencer. While he thought the young man could be a little thoughtless, he wouldn't consider it a big enough issue for him to want him dead. The fact that he considered Rick a bad leader only fuelled his determination to do better.

Alexandria wasn't exactly thriving for the moment but if wasn't doing badly either. Well, before the Savior's arrival, of course. Checking the pantry was first on Rick's agenda, as well as the armoury. He hoped his people hadn't been left with scraps until their next collection.

"They didn't touch the armoury or the crops", Sasha appeared behind Rick, still holding her rifle.

Rick looked back at her over his shoulder and nodded. He was glad to hear that even though he didn't express it.

"What happened at the Monroe's?"

Rick bit back a sigh, "He killed Spencer. Said he asked him to kill me"

Sasha said nothing but her eyes registered nothing but shock. They were both quite as they approached the pantry, where Olivia appeared to be counting their remaining stock.

"They took half but… It still looks like we're gonna have to ration…", the woman explained holding up her clip chart.

Rick clenched his jaw as his eyes roamed the garage, "Was it just food they took?"

"I think so. This is where they all came anyway"

"Alright good. That means we still have guns, crops and medicine. We're gonna have to trade with the Hilltop sooner that we thought"

He ran his hand over his mouth as he figured out his next plan of action. He only paused because he saw his son walking up the street, holding his sister in front of him. He was tempted to call for his attention, but he knew his son wasn't very happy with the way how he'd handled things, so he chose not to.

Residents were still on high alert days after the Savior's left. Though he didn't want to have to live that way, it made him a little more comfortable leaving his children behind when they made their trip up to the Hilltop.

"You think this plan will work?"

Rick's eyes rolled over to meet Abrahams for a second, then back out the RV window, "It's the only option we have right now"

"You don't think we can team up with Hilltop?"

"They're weaker than our weakest. We'd just be leading them to their deaths if we tried anythan' now"

Abraham frowned as he visualised it. Rick leaned forward, squinting out the windshield as they approached the Hilltop.

"Just great", Rick breathed angrily.

An array of black cars were outside the other community, with their gates wide open as they filed in and out.

"Turn back?", Abraham checked.

"Nah, they would have heard us coming anyway", Rick rose from his seat to look at the other passengers, "Move all this to the bedroom, we're gonna make it look like a friendly visit"

Sasha, Scott, Glenn and Tyreese quickly stood, grabbing the bags and boxes from the floor. Daryl peered out the window as he slung his crossbow over his back.

"Park up to the side, out their way", the man instructed in a raspy voice.

Rick rolled his eyes shut as he took a deep breath, ready to face his enemy again. Once their trade was hidden from sight, they exited the RV and made their way up the small Hill. The Savior's seemed to pay them no attention as they past, as most were focused on their task at hand.

The Hilltop residents all stood around uselessly while they resources were collected. Rick watched the scene as he walked up to Barrington house, where Jesus stood on the steps, biting at the side of his thumb. His eyes only lit up a small fraction when he noticed them.

"They came earlier than planned. He's inside talking with Gregory now", Jesus informed quietly.

"Maggie?", Glenn pressed with wide eyes.

"She's fine, in the trailer"

Glenn looked to Rick for permission to leave their side, and Rick gave him a nod in agreement. The man wasted no time going to look for his wife.

"Right behind you", Abraham declared as he followed Glenn, obviously worried about the man's safety.

Rick looked back at the grand home and grunted, before heading towards the doors with the others behind him.

"What are you going to do?", Jesus queried before he got to the office doors.

"Talk to him", Rick sighed before pushing open the doors.

It took him a moment to understand what exactly he was looking at, but he soon realised. Negan was sat at Gregory's desk with his feet up, while the woman he had previously seen him with sat atop it. Gregory was sat on the couch, and while at first glance he appeared fine, his blood soaked shirt said otherwise.

"Oh look 'Chonne, we have company!", Negan grinned, spinning the chair an inch to look at them.

Rick's eyes darted back over to the dead man on the couch.

"Oh don't mind him, in fact, Gregory! Hey Gregory! Don't be rude! Say hello!", Negan mocked sternly.

Rick stepped further into office and winced at the two of them.

"I think I've done us all a favour here. He was ready to sell you out and his own people to save his bloated ass, so I thought I'd just nudge him out the way"

"You tryin' to justify killing him?", Rick challenged with a tilted.

Negan scoffed, "Now now, I don't think the mass fucking murder is in any position to take the moral high ground. Can you believe this guy 'Chonne?"

The woman dressed in all black didn't take her eyes off the corpse, "Hilarious"

"Pretty fucking hilarious. Where's the other guy? Moses? Hey Moses!"

"It's Jesus", Jesus corrected coldly as he looked at his former leader.

"I knew it was something biblical", Negan chuckled, "Well listen, Jesus, I guess you're in charge now right?"

Jesus wore a pensive expression as he looked over at the man.

A low growl quickly caught all their attentions, as Gregory found life again. His body twitched as he awakened, his head moving side to side as his senses picked up on the clean flesh.

The woman stood from the desk and drew her sword, strolling towards the dead man. He barely got a chance to look at her she shoved the blade into the side of his head, and withdrew it just as quickly. Holding the blade away from her, she flicked her wrist to ride the tip of any blood.

"Oh, now you're just showing off", Negan teased as he wiggled his brows at her.

Rick snarled at him, "Listen, we need talk about our… schedule"

Negan looked at him, "What about it?"

"How often do you plan on robbing us?"

The tyrant smiled, "Well, I would say… once a week?"

"That won't work. You take from us that often then we won't have anythan' to survive on, and if we don't have anythan' to survive on then we won't be able to do anythan', then you won't get anythan'...", Rick shrugged at him, "Seems you'd want us to be able to provide for you for as long as possible, right?"

Negan stared at him for a few moments, before looking to his comrade, "What the fuck did I say in the car the other day 'Chonne? Didn't I say he'd be a pain in the ass?"

She smirked as she made her way over to the window.

"Alright you killer southern Belle. We'll do it like this, every two weeks. A lot can get done in two weeks"

"Three"

Negan raised his eyebrows, "You son of a bitch-"

"A lot more can get done in three weeks", Rick insisted.

"I should keep it at every week for that asshole request-"

"Three weeks is fine", The woman agreed, still peering out the window.

Negan looked up at her.

She sensed him, and peered over her shoulder at him. They seemed to have a silent discussion before Negan stood up and snatched his bat off the desk.

"Well, this isn't embarrassing at all", The tall man sighed, "Fine. Three weeks. But let me tell you, that shit better last, or else next time I'm knocking on your front door with a fucking eighteen wheeler, and I will level that creepy little desperate housewives town of yours. Clear?"

Rick scowled as he looked past the man.

"And people say I'm not a nice guy? I'm reasonable, right?", Negan snorted.

Rick tore his eyes away from the woman's back to look at him, "Great".

"Fucking great. Hey Joseph, you might wanna clean that shit up", Negan sent a nod towards Gregory, as he looked at Jesus, "That's a fucking nice couch that he's ruining"

The woman rolled her eyes as she moved from the window, heading out the room. Rick felt compelled to watch her leave.

"Alright gang, this was nice but, it's time for us to go so remember, three weeks' worth of shit or you'll be eating each other's asses", Negan gave a little wave as he slung his bat on to his shoulder and stalked out the room behind his woman, whistling joyfully.

Rick groaned as he looked around the office, "Piece of sh-"

"What happens now?", Tyreese was by his side, looking down at Gregory's body with shocked eyes.

Rick had genuinely forgot that the others where there. He struggled to keep his attentions on anyone else in the room besides her. He shook his head to rid himself of his thoughts, "You're gonna have to take over Jesus"

Jesus shook his head for another reason, "I don't think I'm equipped for such-"

"You don't have a choice right about now. Maggie's here… she can help you…"

Jesus looked down at Gregory once more before snapping his eyes shut away from him.

"We've gotta keep this up", Rick turned to face the others, "We need to buy more time until we're in a position to take him on and win"

Daryl coughed abnormally loud, causing Rick to look at him. His friends eyes darted to the door, and there we woman stood, her sword in her eyes as she scanned them over.

No one said anything as she walked in slowly, past Sasha, past Tyreese and past Rick. She stepped over Gregory's legs and over to a bookshelf. She grabbed a thick, and what looked like to be a heavy book, then turned around swiftly. Rick didn't know why he felt like he was intruding as he watched her make her way out the room, but he was unsure of where else to look.

She left and they all stayed silent for a moment as they caught up with what just happened.

"That can't be good", Tyreese shook his head with wide, panicked eyes, "She must of heard us?"

Rick bit his lip as his eyes trailed the path she walked.

"How long was she even there for?", Sasha hissed.

"She's walking out like nothing happened", Daryl informed as he peered through the window, "She might not of heard anythan' at all but the tail end"

"Should we take the chance?", Jesus looked between them all.

Rick looked up as he turned around, heading over to the window. He quickly caught sight of her as she walked through the gates, book in her hand, her sword on her back. Negan raised his eyebrows at her as she joined him, and the two of them disappeared behind one of the cars.

"If she heard what we said…", Rick straightened up as he thought out loud, "She could have easily told him, came back in here with the rest of them and tried to kill us all, instead of just giving us time to do somethan' sooner if she left it..."

"True", Daryl rasped as he too moved from the window.

"Who is she anyway? I don't remember seeing her in the woods?", Sasha questioned.

"Michonne", Jesus answered, "Sometimes she's with him when he comes here. He calls her his right hand woman"

Rick almost repeated her name aloud, but stopped himself, "Alright well we need to keep an eye on her"

Their remaining time spent at the Hilltop was spent organising a trade that didn't leave either community worse off than they already were. He was expecting a group to return to Alexandria after a long run fairly soon, and he hoped that it would balance things out.

By the time they arrived home he was an anxious mess. While he thought waiting to do anything to the Savior's was a good idea, he was at a loss for what they could do to defeat them, unless he stumbled upon an army of willing fighters. The thought of it all made him sick to his stomach, as he didn't want to put up with the man for any longer.

When he walked into his home that evening, he was greeted to by the smell of some kind of casserole. He frowned as he strolled towards the kitchen and the dish sitting out on the counter, with a note next to it. He didn't read the message, he skipped to the end, where he saw the gift givers name scribbled. He groaned as he chucked it back down on the counter and headed back towards the stairs.

His daughter was sound asleep in his son's room when he checked on the two of them through a crack in the door. He would have appreciated having more time to spend with them, but being a leader was busy work, especially at this time. The only hope was that they could get through this storm and he could go back to feeling like a father again.

"Rick!"

Rick was making his way to the front of the community on a new day when Glenn came and found him. He slowed to hear his friend.

"Morgan's back, he was with another group, like ours", Glenn breathed heavily as he explained.

"Another group?", Rick raised his eyebrow at him, "Where is he?"

Glenn tipped his head in the direction as he started walking again, "He said they're a couple miles west, haven't been touched by the Savior's yet"

Rick picked up the pace as he followed him up the street.

"Carol's still there, they're friendlies, they helped her"

They arrived at Morgan's old home and made their way inside. The man was sat on his couch with, with Daryl and Sasha near him. He smiled when he saw Rick, giving him a single nod.

Rick took a seat on the coffee table in front of him, "What happened?"

Morgan put his cup on the floor between his legs, "They helped us. Took us in and looked after us"

"Who?", Rick pressed.

"The kingdom. A guy called Ezekiel runs it… eccentric man…"

"Fighters?"

Morgan titled his hand back and forth, "Some are. Sort of like here, most are good but some are better"

Rick released a breath that he didn't know he was holding, "They know where you are?"

"I told them I was going home to inform you that were fine. He's expecting me back with you actually…"

"Is that so?", Rick narrowed his eyes at him, "Have you told him about us?"

"Not too much. Just that we have the same agenda, to sustain life"

Rick nearly rolled his eyes, "Alright, well you rest off, we'll talk about heading over there in the morning. Good to have you back"

"Good to be back"

Rick stood up and signalled for Daryl to follow him outside.

"What do you think?", He asked the other man as they stepped out to the street.

"Sounds legit. They've had 'em for what, a week? He looks fine, clean, shaven"

Rick nodded in agreement, "We need to see for ourselves… what kind of people they are… if they're willing to help"

Daryl's eyes prowled the streets, "We need all the help we can get right about now"

Rick glanced at him, glad he also saw the main problem they were facing when it came to defeating the Savior's. He was going to say something else when he saw her, stepping out of her home. His body tensed as he turned his attentions elsewhere.

Daryl seemed to sense the change in atmosphere, "Come on, there's a panel in the wall that's looking a little bent outta' shape"

Rick followed him, grateful for his quick thinking. He was in no mood to deal with anything trivial like matters of the heart, away he had more substantial problems to deal with.

It was later that night when he was lying in bed, anticipating meeting the other leader of this new community that he found himself thinking about Michonne. He had only ever been in her company twice, heard her say all of six words, and yet, he couldn't help but wonder about the dynamics of between she and Negan.

He noticed that the man gave in with hardly any fight when she agreed to giving them three weeks between collections. He squinted at the ceiling as he wondered why she did agree to it and how much influence she had on him. His train of thought led him to their relationship. While most of his apocalyptic family were from all different walks of life, they all had fairly similar dispositions and values. Negan was loud, brass, with the traits of a psychopath, whereas Michonne appeared to be the complete opposite.

Though, he knew not to underestimate her, and he knew she was still quite an obvious threat. She did hold a sword to his throat after all, and he soon realised if he wanted to take out Negan, he'd have to take her out too.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3:

"Good morning Michonne"

Michonne rolled her eyes closed for a moment as she gathered her thoughts, then turned to face the other woman, "Sherry"

"You going out?", the woman walked across the kitchen with a pot in her hand.

"I am", Michonne answered as she took a sip of her lemon and ginger tea.

"Does Negan know?"

She blinked, "He will"

"He doesn't like it when you just disappear like that, you know. He worries"

"He'll get over it"

Sherry turned to look at her, "You two have been together for so long and I would think that with everything that happened between you two-"

"Excuse me?"

The woman's eyes widened a fraction, "Uh, I just meant-"

"What has he told you?", Michonne put her mug down as she eyed her.

"Nothing, just that you've been together for a long time and that you started this place together. That's all"

Michonne watched her for a few moments, before heading out the kitchen, "Enjoy your breakfast Sherry"

She didn't mean to get so defensive with the other woman, but she didn't want anyone to know about her earlier days with Negan. As far as she was concerned, it was none of their business.

Whenever she left on her own she was sure to do it swiftly. Negan would want to know all about her trip and where she was going and she preferred to have her own hidden areas that she could escape to. As proud as she was with what they had accomplished, she couldn't stand being cooped up for too long. It wasn't that she enjoyed the fear of being out in the open, she just found it kept her mind sharp, and her skills at their highest.

With only her sword to hand, she left the compound in one of the jeeps, while the morning sun was still waking the others up. The men at the gate knew better than to question her, though they feared Negan. She didn't intend for her little travels to get them in trouble, but she wasn't going to answer to them anymore than she would their main leader.

The bare streets made driving much more enjoyable. She drove as fast or as slow as she wanted, played music when she wanted and could park anywhere. The solitude was welcomed.

With no real idea of where she was going to go, she stuck to familiar routes, until an idea struck her. She lowered the zip on her form fitting leather jacket and let the breeze caress her chest. She never understood the need for leather, until they discovered that the dead had a hard time tearing through the material. She searched for months for a biker store, and when she finally found one, she made sure to clean the place out.

While she was unsure of how long she was driving for, she was aware that she was quite far from the compound when she noticed a familiar looking RV parked up beside a few residential homes. She slowed down to a stop at the top of the street, watching for any movement. The dead that had spotted her arrival made their way towards her while she posted, so she took her sword from the passenger seat. She beheaded the first as soon as it was close enough, all from the comfort of her seat.

Her eyes narrowed when she saw someone sneak inside the RV, and she immediately noticed that the man didn't seem to be from Alexandria. He looked much too dirty to. She stabbed the next corpse through the forehead when it was in range, but still watched the scene in front of her.

The man hadn't made an appearance and she realised that he could be waiting for their return. She groaned as she got out of the vehicle, knowing she was in a position to help them.

She ran stealthily down the street, ducking behind cars until she was close enough to see the RV up close. There was still no further movement, so she ran along the side it and listened by the door. She could finally hear some kind of shuffling, and what sounded like a sneeze. Her hand found the handle and she opened the door so slowly that it almost didn't seem like she was moving.

The man had his back towards her as he fussed with something. She crept in with her sword raised, ready to strike.

"The fuck is this shit?", He mumbled to himself. He put down the tin and began to turn around when she brought her blade to his neck. He looked at her with wide eyes, "Who the hell are you?"

"This isn't your RV", She replied lightly.

"So?", the man snorted.

"So you should leave"

He looked her over and smirked, "Make me-"

Her blade only moved an inch, but it was enough to break the skin under his chin.

"So you should leave", She repeated.

His hands were still raised in the air as his breathing became shallow. He tried to lower one, but she shook her head at him. The man watched her for a few more seconds before knocking the blade with the back of his hand, slicing himself further, but grabbing a 9mm. off the seat beside him. Michonne didn't lower her sword, but kept her eye on the gun.

"Now look how the tables have turned?", He whipped the blood from his chin with his sleeve, "Fucking bitch, you really caught me there"

Her expression didn't falter.

"So this is what's going to happen, you are going to drop that right there on the floor, and you're going to walk back there to that bedroom"

"No I'm not"

"Oh, yes you are", His eyes scanned her sinisterly, "Where the hell did you come from?"

"Don't worry about that"

He snorted another chuckle, "I'm gonna have some fun with you-"

The sound of a gun going off so close almost made Michonne jump. The intruder fell back on the floor with a thud, his gun still in his hand, a fresh gun wound in his head. She straightened up and turned her weapon to the door, as a hand holding a colt python stepped in to view. Rick kept his eyes on the man as he snatched the gun from his corpse.

She lowered her katana, but not completely as she stood back.

"Who the hell was that?", a tall ginger haired man asked as he appeared at the door. He looked over at Michonne, still frowning, "Who the hell are you?"

Rick eyed her, his eyes darting all over her face, then dropping to her torso.

She quickly remembered her zip was daringly low, and yanked it up, not taking her eyes off him so save herself the embarrassment. She stepped past him.

"Wait a minute", Rick's hand stuck out in front of her, his finger still on the trigger of his gun.

She frowned at his extended limb.

"What were you doing here?"

Her eyes crept up to his head.

He turned to face her, "You're here alone?"

She didn't answer, just stared at him with a stoic expression.

Rick peered out the windows, "Can't see anyone else with you?"

He received nothing from her.

"How about you take a seat then, we can have a little talk-"

"No.", She took a step forward but his arm blocked her again. She sighed, realising she was in quite the predicament, "What do you want?"

"You heard me. A little talk", He motioned the seat behind her.

She looked from him, to the other male at the door and almost turned to sit, when she was met with some resistance. She realised he held the top part of her katana.

"Just in case"

"Don't. Touch"

"Let. Go"

"I'd do as he said ninja lady", the other man warned, his rifle point at her.

She pursed her lips, highly annoyed, but she let go and stepped over to the seat, "Move the corpse, then I'll talk"

Rick handed her sword to the other man as he watched her, then put away his own gun and the intruders, before grabbing the dead man's feet and dragging it out the RV. She was beginning to wish she had just kept driving earlier on.

Once the body was moved, Rick took his weapon out again and held it as he sat opposite her. She was sat back with her arms folded, legs crossed and brow furrowed.

"Now, you gonna tell me why you're out here?"

"No. Next?"

He narrowed his eyes at her, "You're not in any position to dismiss questions"

"But I will"

His gun was aimed at her on his knee, "Are you sure about that?"

She looked at it, then up at him, "Why does it matter?"

"Where you following us?"

Her face pinched, "No. I was not following you"

"Then what were you doing out here?"

Her eyes rolled, "Going for a drive"

"Going for a drive? Out here?"

"You heard me, didn't you?", She mocked coldly.

His jaw clenched at her attitude, "Does Negan know where you are?"

She exhaled as she prepared to lie, but found herself telling the truth, "No."

He raised an eyebrow at her, "I thought you were his right hand woman?"

"Are you done?"

"No. In fact, I think you should come with us"

She didn't like the sound of that, "What for?"

Rick shrugged, "We can just go on a little drive"

She straightened up.

He looked her over again before standing, "Don't worry, just do as you're told and everything will be fine. Is that your jeep up there?"

She felt panic rising within her but made sure to not let it register on her face. Instead she just raised an eyebrow at him.

"We'll take good care of that for you too"

It was becoming more apparent to her that the man in front of her could just as easily as she had heard. His eyes were almost lifeless, and his tone consistently low and intimidating. She wished she'd at least have her Katana close by, so she didn't feel as vulnerable.

Another dark haired man appeared, wearing a leather vest and carrying a crossbow. She recognised him, as well as a black woman followed after him, eyeing her suspiciously, and finally another dark haired male, with long hair and a beard that she knew was named Jesus, and who attempted to give her some little smile as he stepped on the RV. She winced as she tried to figure out where they were all coming from.

They hovered around for a while, hardly saying anything around her, when finally the ginger haired man got behind the wheel. They were spread out around the vehicle, while she sat in the middle, her eyes discreetly searching for her sword. She was in the middle of figuring out how to get herself out the situation when the idea sprung to her.

She waited for the ride to get especially bumpy before she inched across her seat. She would tut and sigh as if it bothered her, hoping no one would catch on that she moved.

It was when they were driving through a heavily wooded area that she stretched her legs in front of her, as if she were getting comfortable. Rick was sat at the front, looking out the windshield, while Jesus and the woman called Sasha spoke to each other in hushed tones. She was sure the man in the leather vest was driving her jeep in front of them.

The chance to escape presented itself. She lunged from her seat and straight out the door, shoving it open with her shoulder and rolling out the vehicle. While the plan seemed like a good one at the time, she was sure she heard something crack as she hit the road. She didn't have time to stop and check as the RV came to a screeching halt only a couple feet away , but she still hoped to her feet and ran as fast as she could into the woods.

She was grateful that they trusted her enough not to restrain her in some way, as she was able to run at optimum speed, despite the searing pain that radiated through her shoulder. Leaves crackling from behind told her someone was hot on her tail but turning around to check would only slow her down. With no weapon, the trees were her new ally, and she darted between them. While it was a little tiring, it created some distance between her and her captor.

The only reason she stopped running was because of the smell. The familiar scent of putrid meat but even more potent. She realised she was uncomfortably close to a sea corpses.

It was impossible to tell which direction they were coming from, so her best bet was to run back in the direction she came. She headed further off the original path, hoping she could go undetected but she soon found out that wasn't the case.

The hand grabbed her arm tight, so she leaned back as she brought her leg up for the highest kick she had ever delivered. Jesus blocked her, his forearm knocking her back by her calf. As soon as her foot returned to the floor, her other foot was up stepping on his thigh so she could bring the other leg up to kick him again. The man was just as quick as her, as he blocked the second attack and moved his leg so she lost her footing. He caught her other arm and pretzel tied her hands behind her back.

She sighed, "I should have just kept driving"

"But you didn't. It was actually pretty nice of you to stop that guy", the man's voice was calm, and actually quite welcoming, "Now let's get out of here"

He frog marched her all the way back to the road, where the others were waiting outside the RV and her jeep. She was in no mood to hear what any of them had to say about her failed plan, and she hoped her face registered that.

Rick was holding up a pair of handcuffs as she approached, and he wasted no time putting them on her. He grabbed her arm and all but threw her back in the RV, but this time he sat her at the table, and he sat down opposite her, his gun in hand.

"You didn't really think that one out did you?"

She pursed her lips at him, "There were corpses and I have no weapon"

He shook his head as the vehicle started up again. She'd wish she told Negan where she was and had way to signal to him that she was in trouble. Her next bet was to try and talk her way out of the man's clutches.

"Why don't we make a deal?", She brought her knees up to her chest and rested her arms over them.

He raised an eyebrow at her.

"You let me go, and I won't tell Negan about this"

His expression didn't change, "I suppose you think not telling Negan about this would be beneficial to us?"

"Very. He won't hurt you or your people then"

"But he doesn't know where you are? So we could keep you and he wouldn't think to check with us?"

"Why would you keep me? How useful would I be to you?"

He shrugged again, "We're gonna find out"

"No, you're not. I'm not going to tell you anything and I'm not going to do anything for you, so how about you raise that gun of yours and put it one between my eyes, and we end this now"

He stared at her, biting the inside of his cheek, "That's the most I've heard you talk.."

She frowned, "What?"

"Nothing", He sniffed, straightening up, "You just sit tight"

She sat back in her seat, her eyes locked on his. She had learnt first time around that something about him made her uncomfortable, and if she could look elsewhere, she would. But there was a little battle going on between the two of them and she wouldn't back down. He stared at her and she stared right back, until she could no longer make out his pupils, just little pools of blue. His head tilted as his jaw clenched, and it was all too invading. She snapped her eyes shut at him as she turned and looked another way, feeling oddly defeated.

He smirked, still continuing to watch her and she refused to look back in his direction for the rest of the journey. She needed to conserve her energy, and she wouldn't allow herself to waste it on staring contests with the calculating leader.

It was late in the afternoon when they arrived at Alexandria. She looked out the window at the little community as they drove through it, and she was still very impressed with it, though she wished she could appreciate it under different circumstances.

"Let's go"

Rick caught her by her arm and she almost screamed, pulling away from him. She realised she did some serious damage to her arm when she jumped out the moving vehicle. He eyed her as she turned in the booth and inched out by herself.

She stepped past him and out the RV, eyeing the town house in front of her.

"Down there"

She trudged down the stairs and into the lower level of the building. She was greeted by what could only be described as, a prison cell. She walked in and looked around feeling even more nervous than before.

Rick pulled the door closed, then signalled for her to step over to him as he held up a smaller set of keys. She obliged when she realised it was for the handcuffs. She stepped away when she was free from her restraints and went straight over to the mattress on the floor.

He watched her for only a second before turning and leaving. Her knee bounced as she gazed around the room, trying to figure out how on earth she was going to get herself out if this predicament.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4:

"Who was that?"

Rick stomped up his porch steps tiredly, while Carl stood at the top, a pensive expression on his young face.

"No one. Where's your sister?", Rick breathed, squinting into the home.

"Sleeping", Carl hurriedly answered, "Now who is she?"

His eyes slid down to his son as he glanced at him. He peaked behind him before he spoke, "A Savior"

Carl's brow furrowed.

"Someone that works pretty close with Negan"

"What are you doing with her?"

"I don't know yet, but… we'll get what we need from her-"

"Won't he come looking for her?", Carl pressed, his brow raised.

"He doesn't know where she is. Said so herself"

Carl huffed as he thought about it, his eyes darting all over the porch.

"Don't worry about it, we'll figure somethan' out-"

"Did you think this over properly? If you hurt her and send her back, we'll still have to fight him, and even if you kill her, we'll still have to fight him-"

"I said don't worry about it", Rick reinforced in a sterner tone.

Carl shook his head as he rolled his eyes, turning back to the house, "Whatever"

Rick rubbed his index finger and thumb together feverishly as he watched his son walk back into the house. He knew the two of them didn't see eye to eye often, but it was draining him. He felt as if Carl was looking for any reason to distance himself further from him and it was taking its toll on his patience.

The next morning Rick took the opportunity to spend some time with his daughter before starting his day. He knew he had important matters to deal with, but he was still trying to figure how he'd deal with them.

"You think she knows about the kingdom?"

Rick tore his eyes from Judith to look at Daryl as they sat on his front porch, "Maybe. Could be why she was out there yesterday. We still need to go back and talk to Ezekiel about everythan'"

"I don't think he'd be on board… somethan' about him... you can tell he likes the little world he's got there", Daryl paused from sharpening his arrows, "Thinks he's a king or somethan'..."

"I got all that too"

"He's got a damn tiger"

Rick smirked, then smiled widely when he caught Judith's attention, "You looking at daddy?"

Judith giggled as she put both hands on his face. Rick sat playing with her until Carl emerged, and he handed his son the little girl for the day.

First on his agenda was passing by to see Michonne, and it was something he was a little nervous about. Having her made him feel like he had some sort of leverage, but as his son had pointed out, they would still be going to war whether he had her or not. It was a tricky situation, but he wasn't going to let her go so easily.

"Hey Rick!"

He stopped in the street when he saw Tobin jogging towards him. He eyed the tall man.

"Hey, uh", Tobin caught his breath, "I heard about Carol… she's up at that other place?"

Rick nodded as he shielded his eyes from the sun, "Yeah, she is"

"Are you going up there again soon? It's just I wanted to see her… make sure she's okay?"

He nearly grimaced at the idea. It wasn't that Rick didn't want Tobin to see her, it was just that the man had proven himself pretty useless outside matters of construction. He preferred to take only the capable beyond the walls and Tobin was not one of those people.

"I know it can get dangerous out there…", it was as if Tobin had read his mind, "But we're all getting better with handling the Uh… walkers… and I really do want to see her"

Rick bared his teeth at the idea, "Yeah… well. Alright"

Tobin nodded his appreciation, "Thank you"

"Go see Rosita", Rick instructed as he started walking.

"Why?", Tobin frowned at him.

"Because she'll help brush up your skills and nobody's getting killed trying to protect you"

He didn't need to turn around to see that the man probably took some offence to his bluntness, but he didn't particularly care either.

The sound of beeping alerted him to look at the front gates, and he was glad to see Tara and Heath back from their long run. He quickly went to greet them and rush over their inventory, feeling some kind of relief that they wouldn't have to ration dramatically since the Savior's took their cut.

As soon as he was done with them he continued on to Michonne, and nervousness began creeping up on him again.

When he stepped inside the home that held her, he sent Scott off for his break while he pulled up a chair outside the door. She was laying on her back, staring at the ceiling with her arms crossed. Two bottles of water sat unopened and a plate of food untouched.

"Why'd you agree to give us three weeks?"

Rick knew she heard him, as she blinked considerably slower.

"Does it matter?", her eyebrow rose, "You still kidnapped me"

His head titled only a fraction as he agreed, "Did you hear what we were talking about at the Hilltop?"

She sighed, rolling her eyes, "Your little pep talk?"

"So you heard?"

"You can't take him on. You can try but all you'll be doing is getting innocent people killed"

Rick narrowed his eyes at her as he sat forward, "Is that somethan' you're okay with?"

She turned her head a fraction to look at him, "I would love to ask you the same thing"

"Your leader, kills and steals from people"

She frowned at him, "Who did you hear that from?"

Rick stared at her, an eye twitching, "What are you talking about?"

She sat up on to her forearms, "What are you talking about?"

"Your leader-"

"He's not my leader, but go on"

Rick stored that piece of information away, but carrier on, "That's his deal, give him half our shit and he won't kill us"

"Because you killed our people first"

Rick sat back in his seat, confused at her understanding of the situation, "Because they tried to kill us first"

Her eyes darted all over his face as if she was searching for the truth.

"A group of your people stopped some of mine, told them they were gonna kill them and bring 'em back here to take whatever we had, so they killed them. We found out about Hilltop, they told us the same thing happened, but Negan killed some sixteen year old kid to scare them all"

He couldn't pinpoint what it was, but something in her demeanour changed as she turned to face him.

"That's why we killed those people. So they didn't get a chance to do the same to us-"

"That's not right. We trade with the Hilltop so whoever told you that-"

"What? You trade with the Hilltop?", He sat on the edge of his seat.

"Yes we do"

"When?"

She exhaled, "I don't know when but-"

"Did he tell you that? That they 'trade'?", It all started to fall into place for Rick, "Let me guess, the trade happens when you're not around, right?"

Her gaze fell to the floor as she did her own calculations.

"He hasn't given them a damn thang. He kills and he steals"

She stood up and zipped her jacket up to the top, she stomped over to the door, "Let me out"

Rick sat back as he shook his head, "I can't do that just yet-"

"Let me out!", She screamed kicking the bar.

Rick rose from his seat, "Calm down, now-"

She kicked the bars again hard, alternating legs each time.

"Hey!", He barked, "Look! I'm gonna go ahead and assume you didn't know he was doing these thangs so I get that you're mad, but you need to calm the hell down. I'm not letting you out any sooner like that"

She began to pace, and Rick felt as though he was watching a caged lion behind the bars.

"We can sort somethan' out here-"

"I'm not turning against him just because I'm mad!", She snapped

"I didn't say that now, did I?", His tone was firm as he bit out the words, "What I meant is we obviously want him to stop what he's doing-"

"What part of 'I'm not turning against him', did you not understand? Do you know what loyalty is?"

"Does he? He obviously hid all this from you because you must not agree with doing thangs like that but he still did it! If I didn't bring you here, you would have been none the wiser!"

She turned her back on him as she paced in a new direction, "You won't use me to get to him"

"I'm not trying to use you", He sighed as he looked toward the front door.

She didn't say anything else, she just continued to pace with her glare to the floor. Rick chose to leave, seeing she was in no position to make arrangements with him.

He came away from the discussion feeling strange. He didn't mean to rile her up that way but he felt an odd sense of relief knowing she didn't stand for Negan's actions. He saw a light at the end of the tunnel through her and he was ready to figure out his next move.

He gathered his closest members to tell them what he learned. Most had the same shocked and confused reaction he had.

"So we can use this right? To our advantage?", Tyreese sat up, hopeful.

"She might be mad at him but that doesn't mean she's willing to kill him", Sasha countered.

Rick nodded as he looked off in the other direction, "She's right. She's still with him but... I think she can get him to stop what he's doing"

"Might make it worse though. If she goes back and kicks his ass, then he's still gonna come looking for whoever told her", Daryl ejected from against the wall, "He obviously kept this hush for a while"

Rick groaned, "That's somethan' else to consider"

"So are you going to let her out?", Sasha eyed him as she awaited an answer.

"Not yet", He shook his head, "We have to be careful-"

A knock on the front door caused them all to whip around to look at it. Rick sighed, standing up answer it, but soon regretting it when he saw who it was.

"Hey… Uh is this a bad time?"

"It is", He dismissed, scratching his brow with his thumb, "What do you want?"

She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, "I just wanted to have a quick word with you?"

He exhaled as he looked back in the house, then shut the door behind him as he stepped out further, "Go on"

"...Rick, I know I've apologised before but… I really am sorry-"

"Is that all?"

"Please, Rick. Let me just explain why I did what I did", Her brown eyes pleaded with him.

He crossed his arms as he looked down at her.

"When those men broke in here… I panicked, I didn't know what to do, I've never seen anything like that and-and I just went into fight or flight mode-"

"Is that what that was?"

"Rick, my children where my first priority-"

"Then why'd you try to play mother to my child?", He cocked his head at her, "Why say all those things you said, and then the first opportunity you got, you left her?"

"I just wasn't thinking clearly-"

"Jessie. You left my daughter in a house, all by herself, when this place was being ripped apart and yet I still tried my best to save your kids when that wall came down"

"I know-"

He ran his hand over his mouth, "Look. I don't feel like we have anythan' else to say to each other. It happened and it's over, and we both know who we can trust now. Alright?"

Her shoulders fell, "I don't want things to be this way Rick. I can't tell you how sorry I am for what I did but you have to remember that I'm not like you, I haven't been the places that you have or seen the things that you've seen or even had to do a quarter of the things that you've done, but I'm trying. I really am trying and I don't want you to feel like you can't count on me"

He inhaled slowly as he looked at her, then nodded, his hand back on the door handle, "Alright well… goodnight Jessie"

When he first arrived at Alexandria the woman was the closest thing he had seen to home. She reminded him of everything he missed of his dead wife, and he all but clung to her. But when she made the decision to leave his daughter alone in the house when Alexandria was under attack, everything he felt for her died. He was grateful that his son had gotten to Judith before anyone else, but the fear of losing the little girl had never really left them.

He was sure his son blamed him for that incident also.

That night he sat out on the front porch long after everyone had fallen asleep, as he was barely able to sleep himself. He felt as if he was on a roller coaster. One moment he was relieved to find some sort of solution to their problems, then the next he'd hit another brick wall. He was glad his people wouldn't have to starve but then he was still worried about the upcoming weeks. He growled to himself as he ran his hand over his face.

"Rick!"

His head shot up as he looked down the street. Abraham waved for him to follow him, and Rick was up in a flash. He sprinted down the street to follow his friend to the front entrance. Five cars and a school bus were driving in the safe zone, with even more vehicles waiting to come in and Rick was dumbfound.

"What the hell?", He frowned at them as he joined Abraham at the gate.

"From Hilltop", He exhaled, "Negan got 'em"

"What?", Rick spat out.

"Rick!", Jesus shut one of the car doors and jogged over to him. The man looked tired, and was covered in blood that Rick could immediately smell wasn't his, "We were attacked"

"Why?", Rick pressed, searching the man with his eyes.

"Negan, he came", Jesus shook his head as he recalled it, "Looking for Michonne"

Rick's stomach fell.

"We told him we didn't have her but they just started to tear everything apart, then someone started a fire and they knocked down the wall, then the walkers came…"

"Great", Rick growled as he dragged his hand over his face. He looked around aimlessly as he thought, "Alright, Abe, go get Sasha, Rosita, Tara, all of you sort out somewhere for them to stay-"

"Got it", Abraham nodded as he marched ahead.

"There's plenty of room so...", Rick turned his attentions to the community.

"We brought as much as we could, we might even be able to go back and salvage a few things", Jesus breathed deeply.

"Don't worry about that now, as long as everyone's safe. Go on and get them all out", Rick patted him on the back, sending him on his way.

"What's all this?", Daryl looked as confused as Rick as he approached him.

"Negan. He tore down the Hilltop looking for her"

Daryl's head whipped around to look at him, then slowly turned back to the line-up of vehicles, "Shit"

"Yeah… I have a feeling he's gonna come looking over here next"

Daryl bit his bottom lip as he thought about it, squinting at the new residents as they poured from the vehicles, "We gotta be ready then"

"We will"

Rick wanted to rip his hair out for being so oblivious to what Negan might do to find Michonne. Guilt swarmed him at the fact that his neighbouring community had to flee their homes because of his negligence. He was on the cusp of losing his mind.

Once he helped get the Hilltop residents in homes around the safe zone, he found himself marching to Michonne's cell. It was in the early hours in the morning, but he had a feeling she wouldn't be asleep.

He was right. She was sat with one of the bottles of water resting on her shoulder, but quickly removed it when she saw him. He soon realised that she must have hurt it when she dived from the RV. He sighed as he took out his keys and opened the door to her cell, being sure to shut it behind him.

She eyed him suspiciously as he stood over her.

"Let me see it"

"Get away from me", She warned.

"Let me see it", He bit out, "We can help with that-"

"It wouldn't have happened if you didn't kidnapped me"

"Then let me fix it"

"You know how to fix a dislocated shoulder?", She mocked.

"I do actually. So take your jacket off and lay down"

She didn't move.

"I can leave, go get somethan' to put you to sleep and do it then? Would you prefer that?", He tilted his head at her, "You won't be very useful with a sword when your arms-"

She groaned as she pulled down her zipper and gingerly pulled the affected arm out. Rick looked to the floor when he saw she only wore a bra underneath.

"Let's get this over with", She laid down and kept her eyes on the ceiling.

He kneeled down beside the mattress and placed one hand on her forearm and the other under her armpit. She bit her lip as he began to move it around, her eyes tightly shut. He hadn't actually done the procedure on someone, but he had seen it done and figured it would be easy enough.

He squinted at the wall as he tried to feel for the socket, cursing in his mind as he realised it was harder than he thought. The temptation to give up to stop causing her pain was almost too great, when he was sure he felt what was a socket. He shoved her arm up, and she cried out in pain, slapping her other hand over her mouth.

He moved the arm around a little more and immediately noticed a difference in the movement, "It's in"

She was breathing deeply, her eyes still shut.

He thought the urge to look at her stomach and quickly stood, "I'll send someone down with some ice"

She gathered herself as she slowly sat up, striking the area as she inspected it.

"Alright", Rick quickly left the building, having accomplished nothing from seeing her.

He genuinely intended to speak to her about what Negan had done, but he saw more than he bargained for and heard more than he needed to. The moment replayed in his mind when he finally made it to bed and he reprimanded himself for it, but it was if he couldn't help himself.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5:

Michonne had planned to refuse food again on her second day of captivity, but hunger and weakness eventually got the best of her. She only ate the fruits given to her, and hoped it would tide her over until she was either released or found a way to escape.

The person guarding her cell was sat reading a thick book, and he would glance up at her occasionally. The way he spoke suggested to her that he was probably quite intelligent, but socially inept.

She stood up and walked over to the bars when nature called, "Bathroom".

The man looked up at her, "I have not been permitted to allow you access to any facilities without the presence of someone skilled with a firearm"

She stared at him for a few moments, before guessing, "You're not allowed to let me out?"

"Affirmative", He gave her a single nod.

She winced at him, "I've been allowed to use the bathroom before?"

"They were all skilled with firearms. I am not"

She rolled her eyes, "Can you get someone that is?"

"Negative. I've been informed to only leave my perch in the event of your escape or to be relieved of my duty"

She stared at him again, then pulled down her zip on the front of her leather pants, "Fine, I'll just go right here-"

"I'll get someone", The man stood quite quickly and headed to the front door.

She was glad, because it was a bluff she wasn't actually prepared to follow through on. She was pacing her cell when she heard the front door open again, and she was surprised he had found someone so soon, but found she was mistaken.

A young boy stood staring at her from the other side of the bars. Her eyes darted around for a moment, before landing back on her.

"You're a Savior?", It didn't sound like a question any more than it sounded like a quote.

She folded her arms over her chest as she studied him.

He shifted his weight to his other foot, "I'm not going to hurt you"

She raised her eyebrows at him, impressed that he saw himself as a match, "Thank god".

He squinted at her, "So you work with Negan?"

She rolled her shoulders as she began to pace again, "What do you want, kid?"

"I'm not a kid", He rebuffed, insulted.

"Fine, what do you want adolescent?"

"Do you work with him?"

She pursed her lips, "Something like that"

He frowned, her answer leading him to another assumption, "Is he your boyfriend?"

She came to a screeching halt as she turned to look at him.

He eyed her, waiting for her answer.

"No", She tilted her head at him, "Now what do you want?"

"You can stop him then? Right?"

She stared at him, "Excuse me?"

He looked towards the door as footsteps approached, then the door opened.

"Carl? What are you doing here? Your dad will flip if he hears about this", the woman she knew to be Sasha appeared as she reprimanded the teen, "Go on, out"

Michonne wondered who his father was, and if it could be Rick. She didn't wonder for too long as she figured it must be, as they did bare a resemblance. She soon regretted being interrupted, as she could have gotten some information from him too.

Sasha opened the cell door and lead her out the basement with a rifle only inches away from her back. Michonne's eyes roamed the street as she emerged from the stairs, the sun peeking out from behind the clouds. Residents were scattered around, preparing for their day, and the few that spotted her stopped and glared.

Sasha led her to the main home, where the bathroom windows also had bars on it. She wished they would at least allow her to take a shower, as the one in the bathroom was considerably nicer than the one she had at home.

Once she relieved herself she was met by the end of Sasha's rifle again, and led back out the home. She raised a questioning eyebrow when she saw Rick stood at the bottom of the stairs that led to the basement. Naturally she would have thanked him for helping her with her shoulder, but given the circumstances, she figured it was the least he could do.

She walked right back into her cell while he and Sasha had a discreet conversation while looking her in. Rick glanced at her a few times, and so did Sasha, making her feel like some sort of spectacle, so she turned her back on them.

A few more moments passed before she heard heavy footsteps walk back out the door. She didn't need to see the person to know it was Rick, as she'd all but memorised her captors step pattern. He stomped, his feet would hit the floor forcefully, and usually at a quickened pace. She wondered if that was how he usually carried himself or if it was due to the stress of running a community during such a difficult time. She soon rid the man from her thoughts all together.

Her morning in the cell went by painfully slow and she hated it, as she hated feeling restless. She could barely see anything out of the window provided, besides people's feet on the street outside. She did notice an increase in foot passage, but other than that, she had nothing to do. She thought of her Katana and where it could be, but it just made her angry that Rick had taken it from her.

She was drifting off to sleep when she heard a loud crash that made her jump. She sat up, trying to listen out to anything further, when all she could hear were approaching footsteps, then the front door flew open.

"Come on! Quick!"

"What? What about her?"

"She's locked in, come on we have to get to the front gate!"

The man quickly jumped up and left his seat, running out the door and slamming it behind him. Michonne sat up, wincing as she wondered what she had just heard, as well as what was happening. She climbed off the mattress and tried to look through the window again, but all she could see was feet running past the home.

She paced her cell as she tried to listen out for something else, but nothing. She tried not to let her imagination run wild, and instead figured they may have run into one too many corpses. She found slight comfort in knowing she was locked away from it all, but she would still be in an undesirable position if it were the case.

When the door opened again she tore herself from her thoughts to see who it was. She frowned when she saw it was the teen boy again.

"What happened?", She asked, looking him from head to toe.

"He's here for you", the teen took out a set of keys and put them in the door, then shoving it open.

She eyed him suspiciously, then realised who she meant. She stalked over to the door, and the boy picked something up from the wall and handed it to her. It was her sheathed katana, and she had never been happier to see it. She took it and gave the boy a single nod, before sprinting out the front door.

She wished she could have stopped to ask him why he freed her, but she had a bone to pick with Negan. Her anger towards him had just been put aside until she saw him again.

"Stop right there!"

Michonne slowed to a stop, looking over her shoulder at the blonde woman who had a small pistol pointing in her direction.

"You're the one he's looking for right?", She questioned, her hand trembling slightly.

Michonne looked her from head to toe, not sure what the housewife wanted from her.

"Rick told him you're not here, so I suggest you get back to where you were", the woman motioned up the street with the gun.

Her eyebrow shot up, "It'll be safer for you all if I leave unharmed"

The woman's dark brows furrowed, "But Rick said-"

"Jessie!", Carl hissed the woman's name as he approached them both, "What are you doing?"

Jessie shook her head at the teen, "Your dad said she's not here and you shouldn't be out here either-"

"She has to go or else this place will end up like the Hilltop", Carl stepped closer to her cautiously, "My dad doesn't know what he's doing"

"He does", Jessie insisted, "If we keep her-"

"Then we're all dead"

Jessie looked at Carl with wide, timid eyes, that darted back to Michonne. She seemed to be battling with herself, as the gun lowered ever so slowly back down to the ground.

Michonne watched the exchange curiously, before continuing on her with her exit. She was glad the teenager was there to talk the woman out of her poor choice, as Michonne didn't want to have to kill her to leave. She preferred not to kill anyone if she didn't have to, but if it came down to it, she would.

The town was easy enough to navigate, and she soon found herself on the street that led to the entrance.

The front gate was on the ground, and beneath the wheels of an eighteen wheeler truck. Negan walked around in front of it, while the Savior's where sprinkled everywhere, holding their guns to the heads of the residents. She could tell that Negan was probably giving some sort of twisted speech on why he was going to kill them.

"Hey Negan! Look!"

Negan looked in the direction where the young Savior had pointed, and a big smile began to spread on his face, "Is that my 'Chonne? Is that my fucking 'Chonne?"

She snaked her way through the people stood and kneeled around her. As mad as she was, she was glad to see him. He was the closest thing she had to family, and she felt relieved to see a familiar face.

"Where the hell were you?", Negan asked when she was close enough.

"Let's go", She insisted, her eyes darting to Rick, who was stood behind Negan, holding Lucille in both hands, with guns pointing at him from all directions.

Negan too, looked back at the leader, "You said she wasn't fucking-"

Michonne grabbed his arm, "Now."

He frowned at her in disbelief.

She looked right back at him with dark, serious eyes.

Negan shook his head, "If one of these fuckers hurt you, I'd rather beat the shit out of 'em now"

"Do I look hurt? I'm perfectly fine, so let's go", She reinforced in a more biting tone.

He looked over his shoulder at Rick, then over the residents as he held his hand out. Rick looked like he wanted to beat him with the bat as he handed it back.

"Well, looks like you fuckwits got lucky, huh?", Negan sighed as he rested his bat on his shoulder, "I hope I won't have to come back here any time soon"

Michonne glanced at Rick, who was looking right at her. She straightened up as she stepped past Negan and walked alongside the truck, out of the safe zone.

She knew Negan was dying to know what had happened, and the truth was, she was unsure of what she would tell him. It all depended on how he answered her own questions about how he's conducted himself behind her back.

"I'm driving this one. Get in", She instructed as she walked down to the furthest vehicle at the end of the line-up.

Negan's head jerked back at the request, though he still got in, "What the hell is going on?"

She started the car as soon as his door closed, reversing to turn the car around, "Remember when you told me we'd be trading with other groups? How you said it would be a good way for us to establish contact with others?"

He eyed her, his brow furrowing, "Yeah…"

"When did that all change? When did you decide it would be easier to kill people and take their stuff-"

"Alright, alright", He held his hands up as he sighed, "How'd you find out? One of those little fuckers in there tell you?"

"The fact that I even found out anything is the problem Negan!", She breathed through a clenched jaw, "You've been lying about this whole thing for months! All those times I saw them loading up the truck- where the boxes empty or something? Would you all wait until I left to laugh at me?"

"No, Michonne. I wasn't fucking laughing at you-", He insisted sternly.

"Then what? You put on this huge production! No wonder you were so quick to kill Gregory when I went with you! You didn't want him to blow your cover! You went above and beyond to lie to me, and you're meant to be the one person I can trust!"

"Do you want me to apologise for putting food on your fucking plate?", He squinted at her.

"That's all you have to say for it all?", She shook her head with pure disbelief as she looked out the windshield.

"Look how many people depend on us! You think I've got time to sit back and go over terms and fucking conditions with these other assholes? This is the world we live in now 'Chonne! All that 'kill only when necessary' shit doesn't always put food on the table", He scoffed at the notion, "These people fear us, so they won't want to get on our bad side, and that's how we keep the Sanctuary running. Look how fucking far out you have to go on your scavenges and you only come back with a quarter of the shit we get from those fuckwits"

She couldn't even look at him, she kept her eyes firmly on the road.

"The only thing I regret about this whole thing is not starting sooner", He sniffed as he looked out his window, "And now we're gonna have to go out scoutin' again now the hilltops fucking gone"

She glanced at him, "What?"

"Yeah. I had to tear the shit down because I was looking you, weren't I? Since you like to fucking disappear so much", He watched her as she drove, "You don't like to stick around so you can't be mad at how I keep things running when you gone-"

"Why hide it from me then? If you're so whole heartedly sure in your choice to kill and steal, then why hide it?"

"I thought it would be easier that way", He shrugged, "We wouldn't have to argue about it"

"So it was easier for you to lie to me?"

He pursed his lips as he examined her, "Look, sorry for 'faking it'... but I've kept this place running for us-"

"No, you've kept it running for you. For you to feel like a king-"

"Do you remember how we were fucking living before we found that place? Oh wait, no. Of course you don't because I was the one keeping shit from hitting the fan"

Her head whipped to the side to the side to look at him, "You're going to use that against me now?"

He inhaled as he looked to the roof of the car, "No. That was a shitty thing to say, I take it back, alright? My point is, you know what kind of man I am. You know what I'm willing to do, and the only reason I don't do even half the shit that I really want to do is because you're beside me! So don't be surprised if I go a little nuts when you're not there!"

"A kid? A sixteen year old kid?"

He sat back in his seat, "Like I said. Don't be surprised"

She bit the inside of her cheek, feeling quite horrible after his admission. She couldn't argue with his point, he was right, she shouldn't have been surprised about what he was willing to do, she'd seen it for herself, and she felt a fool for believing otherwise.

"You're no better than the people we've killed", She exhaled, her tone considerable lower.

"Maybe not…", He smirked, "But I'll be the man you want me to be when you're around"

"So the person that you are when I'm not around, is the real you?"

He didn't even attempt to answer, he just stared at the side of her face as she drove. A few moments of silence ensued as the tension in the vehicle was at an all-time high.

"Are you going to tell me how the hell you ended up there? What happened?"

She squinted out the windshield, finally settling on the answer she was going to give him, "I went out for a drive, some idiot tried to attack me… I ended up dislocating my shoulder and they killed him and helped me out"

"That fucking cowboy said he hadn't seen you?"

"He didn't. He wasn't there"

"You were there for what, two days? He didn't know you were in there?"

"Nope", She shook her head.

Negan chuckled, "He really is a piece of shit leader"

Her grip on the wheel tightened at his comment, and it took her a moment to realise that she reacted such a way. The car ride was becoming too much for her, and for the first time ever in their friendship, she wanted to be away from him.

"You have to stop what you're doing"

Negan sighed as he looked over at her, "Doesn't work like that 'Chonne"

"All your doing is making us a target-"

"Who the fuck can take us on? Huh? I'd love to see them try!", He snorted dismissively, ready to shoot the idea to the ground when he seemed to think about it. He squinted at her, "Why? Did you hear something back there?"

She glanced at him, preparing to lie again, "I didn't hear anything but you don't need to be a rocket scientist to know that if you kill and steal from people, all you're doing is making enemies-"

"And I'll be ready if any of those fuckers grow the balls to come and knock on our door", He insisted smoothly, rolling his gaze to the windshield, "If they have any sense they'll follow the fucking rules and we won't have to kill them all"

"How about we don't take the risk? What if we end up with more casualties?"

She could tell he was getting fed up with the argument, his shifted in his seat, rolling his knuckles, "No one is going to stop us"

"There's still an ' _us_ ' in this?"

His head turned to face her, "There will always be an 'us' in this unless you decide otherwise"

Her eyes didn't move from the road in front of her.

"Have you decided otherwise?"

She hesitated internally but kept a neutral expression on her face, "I'll protect you the way you protected me; you didn't let anybody hurt me and I'll do the same for you, but I won't support you in this"

His dark brown eyes roamed her before he sat back in his seat, sniffing, "Then there will always be an ' _us_ '"

She inhaled deeply as she tried not to let her anger with him get the best of her. Negan's attitude disgusted her, and unfortunately for those around him, he was a stubborn man. She knew it wouldn't be as simple as just telling him to stop; he'd have to be immobilised, stripped of his resources and his man power. She'd hate that it would have to come to it, but she spent the remainder of the journey trying to figure out how to stop her friend.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6:

Rick's eyes travelled all over the empty cell as he tried to catch up with what had happened earlier. He could hear his confidants trying to piece it together themselves behind him, but he was hardly paying attention to their discussion. Needless to say, he was very annoyed with Michonne's early departure.

"Sorry to interrupt…"

The hushed tones silenced as they all looked towards the door, Rick included. Jessie stepped into view looking sheepish as her eyes darted from person to person.

"I think I know who could have let her out…", She suggested, and quickly continued when they all stared her down, "I tried to stop her in the street, but Carl came over and-"

"Carl?", Rick repeated, stalking over to her.

She nodded hurriedly, "He stopped me, told me to let her go… I think he's the one that let her out in the first place"

Sasha sighed, rubbing her forehead with three of her fingers, "I caught him in here yesterday when Eugene came and got me to take her to the bathroom. I sent him on his way"

Rick's looked between the two women for a moment, before stomping past them. He didn't think it was possible for him to be any angrier, but he was. He knew his son didn't agree with his decisions but to make such a move behind his back was the breaking point for Rick. He marched his way back to his home and shoved the front door open.

"Carl?!", He called, slamming the front door closed as he looked around the open plan home.

"What?", Carl answered from the living room, in an uninterested tone.

"Get out here now", Rick ordered, pacing the foyer.

Carl exhaled as he stood and slumped over to his father.

"Did you let her out Carl?", Rick cocked his head at him.

Carl shrugged, "Yeah?"

"Why? Who told you to do that?"

"No one told me to do it, I did it because I wasn't going to sit back and watch another person get killed", Carl bit out, raising his eyebrows at his father.

"Is that what you think would have happened?"

"Of course it would have! Did you forget about Aaron? Spencer? How many people does he have to kill before you actually do something-"

"What the hell do you think I'm doing here? Running around making it look like I'm busy?", Rick squinted at his son.

"You know said yourself she didn't know what Negan was doing so you should have let her go so she could stop him-"

"What makes you think she's gonna help us? Who said she was going to stop this?", He stepped closer to Carl, waiting for his answer.

Carl glared at him from beneath his hair.

"You don't have to like my decisions, and I'll be the first person to put my hands up and say I've made some bad ones", Rick pointed at his son, "But you don't get to make calls like that. That woman's loyalties are with Negan, and she made that very clear, and you would have known that if you stuck around for a little longer when you were eavesdropping"

Carl's gaze dropped to the floor.

"I was planning on talking to her. Telling her about what Negan did to the Hilltop, hoping to get her to see what kind of man he is but now? What happens now Carl? Since you think you're smarter than everyone else and you can make the call for sixty other people, tell me, what do we do now Carl?"

His son didn't answer, he just continued glowering at the floor.

"If you want your opinion to be taken seriously then you approach me like an adult and we discuss things like adults, and that's how we decide what happens here! That's how we lead! When you sneak around behind everyone's back and you come over to me like a stroppy teenager then I'm going to treat you like a stroppy teenager. You got it?"

Carl inhaled, "Yeah"

Rick exhaled, straightening up, "Think about everyone else next time before you act to spite me. Now get upstairs"

Carl stepped past him and headed toward the staircase. Rick rolled his eyes shut as he pinched his nose bridge with his thumb and index finger, trying to calm himself. He hoped his son would heed his word, but he knew chances were slim, as Carl could be just as bullish as he could.

He wished he could go and hide in his own room but he had to check that the gate could be fixed after the Savior's tore it down, and he also wanted to prepare the people on watch, just in case Negan made a return.

He wondered if Michonne told the man everything that had happened, and a small part of him didn't think she would, as she obviously hadn't told him about their discussion at the Hilltop. Though, she left with Negan quite quickly, and she was clearly still angry with him about the new information she had learnt while in the safe zone, Rick couldn't help but notice something changed about her when she saw his enemy. It was as if someone breathed life into her, and he was even more sure that he saw Negan's posture straighten when she approached him. Their body language confused Rick, and the fact that she said that he wasn't her leader didn't help clarify their relationship any further. Rick didn't know why it all bothered him but he didn't have time to consider the reasons.

He focused purely on securing Alexandria further over the next few days. The Hilltop residents were trying to salvage their home, though it would take much more work than anyone would have liked. Rick refused to have the same thing happen to his community.

"We're gonna go speak to Ezekiel tomorrow, tell him everythan' and hopefully get him to join us", Rick explained to Maggie as they walked down the street towards his home.

"Daryl told me about him", Maggie winced, "You think you can get him to?"

Rick rolled his shoulders back, rubbing his neck, "It's worth a try"

"Hey! The gate!"

He turned to see Glenn waving for them both to come. Rick sprinted back down the pavement towards him, while Maggie jogged behind him. He hoped it wasn't another visit from Negan as he was in no mood for such a thing.

When all three arrived at the gates, Rick was surprised to see Morgan, Carol and Ezekiel, as well as a few Kingdom residents on horseback.

Jesus, Daryl and Abraham gave him identical looks that seemed to convey that it wasn't a pleasant visit.

"What's going on?", Rick asked as he approached them all.

Morgan jumped down from his horse with a huff, "They found us"

Rick squinted at him.

Ezekiel climbed down from his horse also, looking incredibly annoyed, "They turned up at our doors yesterday, heavily armed and looking for blood"

Rick groaned as he ran his hand over his face.

"They took half of everything. Threatened to level the place", Morgan informed in a more calm tone.

"Yeah, he does that", Glenn sighed.

"From what I understand, you've already had a run in with these people?", Ezekiel stepped closer to them.

"Yeah, we have. We was gonna come and talk to you about him", Rick shifted his stance as he noticed the man's pointed expression.

"Isn't that convenient? A week after you are invited to our home, this group of killers that we've managed to avoid turn up on our doorstep?"

Rick's brow furrowed at the man's accusation, "What is it your trying to say exactly?"

Ezekiel gave him a stern look, "I think it's all a little too coincidental-"

Rick's colt python was in his hand as he took a step closer to the heavily bearded man.

"Hey!", Morgan called stepping between the two.

"Wait! Now hold on- just hold on a minute!", Maggie insisted as she also put herself between them, Glenn joined her while Jesus stood behind Ezekiel.

Rick still glared at him, his finger finding its rightful place on the trigger.

"Look, we don't know how the Savior's found you because we've been too busy dealing with our own mess, alright?", Maggie tilted her head at Ezekiel, "I think now's a good time for all of us to sit down and figure out a way to deal with them, don't you agree?"

Ezekiel looked over his shoulder at one of the other men that was still on a horse, before looking back at Maggie, "Fine"

Maggie turned to Rick, who gave her a single nod in agreement. She then looked behind Ezekiel at Jesus who also nodded to her.

"Alright then, come on"

Once the men calmed, they all headed to the church to discuss the issue at hand. Rick was beginning to feel some sort of relief, knowing Ezekiel would be on board with taking on the Savior's. He knew they had strength in numbers and finally, their numbers were growing.

"How many men do they have?", Ezekiel asked as he looked to Rick and Jesus.

"I've seen groups as big as twenty", Jesus answered.

"There were at least thirty that night in the woods", Daryl rasped from his place against the woods.

"He came with no less than fifty when he came to get his woman", Abraham quipped from the bench.

"His woman?", Ezekiel quirked his eyebrow at the large man, "The one with the sword?"

"That's the one"

Rick pursed his lips as Abraham's description of Michonne.

"She was there yesterday. He took a young boy by the throat when he was making his threats and she stopped him", Morgan explained, "Don't think she agrees with his take on things"

"She doesn't", Rick spoke before he could consider it, "She didn't know what he was doing until the other day"

"So we could possibly have someone working on the inside?", Ezekiel urged.

Sasha gave Rick a knowing look, "Not exactly"

"Sasha's right, we can't bet on it, but If we all get our people ready, this is something we can handle", Rick insisted, "We need to find their camp, scope it out, see what we're really dealing with here, and then we go in. We play along with his little collections until every single one of us is ready to take him down"

"I agree", Maggie nodded.

"Me too", Jesus added, looking to Ezekiel.

The other leader looked sceptical, but still slowly nodded, "Fine. We'll do it"

Rick could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

The other leaders kept to their word and residents were informed of the pending battle. They were also trained on a daily basis, as Rick wanted everyone who was able to be capable of protecting themselves and each other.

By the time Negan was due his next visit, Rick was ready. He had everything boxed to go by the gates so the Savior's didn't need to go any further into the safe zone, and he stayed close to the gates so he would be the first to greet him.

When he saw the array of black cars approaching that early afternoon, he made his way back down the watch tower, leaving Sasha to keep a watchful eye on the exchange.

"The pricks are here", Abraham mumbled as he pulled back the gate, which was still a little stiff after their last visit, but still in working order.

Rick placed both hands at his sides as he watched the cars grind to a stop in front of him. Savior's began to pour out of the vehicle, and he took a deep breath as he prepared to face his nemesis.

None of the Savior's moved from their spots, they all just stood by their vehicles and waited, as a car door slammed from one of the cars at the end. Rick glanced at Abraham, who wore the same confused expression.

Michonne appeared, walking past her people as she made her way to the gates. Rick was even more confused, as she appeared to be without having Negan. She eyed them both, her sword glimmering in hand as she stopped in front of Rick.

"Where is he?", Rick questioned, wincing at her.

"Not here", She answered flatly, "I don't think he'd appreciate such a meeting anyway"

Rick stared at her, "Meeting?"

"Yes. You want to stop him, don't you?"

His eyes sailed past her to all the people that stood silently behind her.

"They want to stop him too", She explained, as if she had read his mind.

Rick was more than surprised. He looked to Abraham again, who still looked just as confused as he raised an eyebrow at him.

"Just in case you're wondering if this is genuine", She peaked behind her, and someone in the first vehicle opened the car door, reaching inside and pulling out a severed head, "That belonged to a man named-"

"Wade", Rick squinted as he recognised the head of the man in question.

"Yes. He found out… nearly blew our cover so we had to… keep him quiet", She looked back at him.

Rick took a step back as he tried to wrap his head around the situation in front of him.

"We'll still some of those", She tipped her head in the direction of the boxes, "We can't exactly go back empty handed"

Rick slowly nodded, "Yeah, alright, well… let's go have that little talk then?"

Rick led her, and another man that he knew to be Dwight to the Monroe's home, as he preferred that to be the place where meetings took place. He sent for Jesus and Maggie to join them while he sat across from the two Savior's in the living room.

"So what brought this on?", He asked as his eyes darted back and forth between them both.

Michonne made no attempt to answer, so Dwight spoke instead, "We're all just tired of him. He's gonna get us all killed and we don't want to be a target. We want to work with other communities and all that, but his way of doing it… it's causing more problems"

Rick ran his tooth around his tongue as he accepted his reply, "And how do you suppose we stop him?"

Dwight answered again, "There's more of us back at the Sanctuary that don't want him as our leader, but everyone's scared. We've all seen how he kills people… no one wants to get there skull beaten in so-"

"If at least half of your people want him gone then that's more than enough"

"We need more. More people to take on the others. The ones that are fine with Negan are mostly the fighters, the ones that go out a lot... we might be outnumbered"

Rick sighed as he looked at Michonne, "And what do you propose?"

Her eyes rolled over to him from the window, "No one touches him"

Rick raised his eyebrows at her.

"I'll deal with him. You just prepare your people for the others"

Rick's eyes trailed up and down her as he tried to understand what she meant, "You realise the only way to stop him is to kill him"

"No. The only way to stop him is to take away his ability to do what he does. He doesn't need to be dead for that to happen"

"You think he can change?", Rick squinted at her, feeling himself get annoyed.

She stared him down.

"You know what he's like so why are you protecting him?"

Her eyes narrowed at him, "As I said, no one touches him"

"So then why should we help each other?", Rick cocked his head at her, "I want him dead for what he's done and I'm not gonna let anybody stand in the way of that"

"I'm not standing in your way, I'm sitting", She glared back.

"Alright guys, let's just all calm down", Dwight insisted, raising his hands at the two of them.

Rick's eyes didn't leave Michonne's, and she wasn't backing down either.

"We need to remember what we're trying to do here"

Michonne uncrossed her legs and stood, "I've said all I've needed to say"

Rick watched her strut out the room, and listened as the door slammed shut. He looked to Dwight with a questioning expression.

"Look, you can't expect her to kill him-"

Rick snorted, "I wasn't. I'm gonna kill him"

Dwight shook his head, "She won't allow it either. They… god, I'll probably lose a hand if it gets out that I told you this… I'm the only person that knows… and even then I don't even know that much-"

"What are you talking about?", Rick frowned at him.

"He found her… I think she had a kid and… I don't know how it all happened but he saved her or something… and they've been together ever since. I think it was just the two of them for a while before they got up here and started the Savior's… either way, they have each other's back", Dwight shrugged, "Could you imagine planning to kill someone you've been with since the beginning? You wouldn't want to right? You'd just try to find a way to stop them, and that's what she wants. To stop him"

Rick's tongue rolled around his teeth as he thought about it, sighing in annoyance.

"She will stop him. I know she will, but she won't let anyone hurt him"

He sat forward in the couch as he considered what the other man was telling him. He was glad that she was willing to help them stop him, but the thought of going up against her to get to Negan wasn't something that he wanted to do, and with all things considered she had been the rather helpful. He found himself facing a whole new challenge, as he wanted Negan dead regardless, but he wasn't sure how that would work with Michonne in the way, as he'd lost all interest in taking her down to.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7:

Michonne ran through the small group of dead with ease, the light bouncing off her blade as she slung it with purpose. The bodies dropped to the floor with a thud, and heads rolled away, still growling at her.

"Show off"

She looked back at Dwight, who had his gun pointed, in case of any stray always. She flicked her katana, ridding it of the fresh blood and made her way back over to him by the jeep.

"They should be here by now, right?"

She opened her mouth to answer him, when she heard the faint sound of engines approaching. She narrowed her eyes in the direction, and saw the RV, as well as another car in front of it.

The sun was setting, and she was hoping by the time they walked to the Sanctuary, it would be dark enough for them to go unseen.

"How long have we got?"

Dwight looked at his watch, "He should still be a few miles out. Rachel said she'd honk the horn when they're coming up close"

She nodded, looking back towards the vehicles.

"I'm sorry by the way"

Her eyebrow arched as she whipped her head back around to look at him.

"About hiding everything…", He rubbed that back of his neck, "He can pretty persuasive as you know"

"Oh", She sighed, her gaze dropping to his boots, "Yeah, can't say I blame you for that"

"We all preferred it when you were around more…"

"Looks like I should have been around more"

The both silenced as the vehicles parked up beside their own and the mixed community members appeared. Dwight made his way over to them, while Michonne hung back, switching to high alert as she knew it was a risky task.

They all spoke in hushed tones as she made her way around the jeep and over to the woods beside them. She realised visibility would be an issue when they headed back, so planned to mark the trees as they went along.

"Alright, let's go"

Dwight was behind her and she started ahead, purely to keep some distance between herself and the others, just in case.

Jesus had other ideas, as he was soon beside her, "So where does Negan think you are?"

She glanced at him, "I told him I was going out"

He nodded as he stepped in sync with her, "I only have to ask as we don't want a repeat of what happened last time…"

She flinched as she remembered what happened to his home, "Sorry about that… how is it?"

"Thanks… and it's coming along well. We're rebuilding the wall so… it's getting there"

She scanned the trees in front of her.

"I understand that you're in a pretty sticky situation…", His tone was lower, "But we appreciate that you're willing to put yourself in harm's way to help us… as I imagine he wouldn't be happy about this"

She smirked, "He would be very unhappy about this"

A little smile tugged on the edge of his lips, "So, how long is the walk?"

"Just over a mile"

"Alright"

She conversed with Jesus lightly as they made their way to the Sanctuary. She wasn't usually one for small talk, but it didn't feel forced, and she found herself feeling comfortable to talk to him, even making small jokes with him on occasion. It wasn't something she did with anyone besides Negan. Before the turn she was always smiling and laughing with most people she came into contact with and she missed that carefree side of herself.

While she kept her attentions to the front for most of the trek, she looked back when she heard a familiar growl, and saw Glenn take down the corpse that was trapped on a tree branch. It was then that she discovered how close Rick was to her, as he walked between Sasha and Dwight. She made eye contact with him for only a second before she turned back around, not in the mood for another staring contest with the man.

When they finally within range of the building, the sky was dark, and the evening lights were on. The low growls from the dead that were tied to the perimeter fence could be heard, as well as the odd movement from within the compound.

"This is it", Dwight whispered as they all lined up to look.

"How many on watch?", Rick hissed at him.

"Two every… thirty yards? We have two doing patrol on foot as well every twenty minutes to a half hour"

"This the only entrance?"

"Yeah, we bricked up the other one"

Rick sniffed, "Let's take a walk around it-"

"Then we split up", Michonne instructed, "Twelve is too many to be sneaking around"

"It's true", Daryl agreed as he shifted in his crouched position.

"Fine", Rick looked around, "Dwight will take Glenn, Abraham, Scott, Steven and Richard, the rest of us follow Michonne"

She didn't know why her eyes widened a fraction when he said he name, but she recovered and took the lead in one direction while the other group went the other way. She had to admit that It felt strange, sneaking around her home, but she knew it needed to be done. She led them to the back of an abandoned side building, crouching so they could all scan the area.

"Those top floors?", Rick questioned, closer to her than she expected.

She turned her head a fraction, "Homes, meeting rooms, look out spots"

"How many exits does the building have?"

"Three on the ground floor, the other floors have two that lead to stairs on either side"

He was hovering behind her, and she was all too aware of his presence. She informed them of the fences weak spots, as they continued around the building, as well as the best routes to take if they wanted to remain inconspicuous until the last minute, before they started to head back around to the front of the area.

"Get down!", Michonne hissed when she heard a car honk it's horn as it approached the Sanctuary, with four more cars following behind it.

Everyone crouched as low as they could in the bushes and behind the trees as a bright security light came on. Michonne listened to the gates opened, the vehicles were granted access, but her attentions were quickly drawn to that a close growl. She saw the corpse making its way over to Sasha, and she watched the woman take a knife to its head as swiftly as she could. She almost breathed a sigh of relief, until Sasha shoved the corpse away from her with such force that it fell into the bushes, making a rustling sound and a thud.

"What the fuck was that?"

"I dunno, hold on, hey! Caine! Shine the light over there for a sec!"

Michonne could have groaned. She straightened up and gave Sasha a nod for her to stay back, then turned and walked out in the open, "It's just me!"

"Oh! Never mind! It's Michonne!"

She quickly made her way over to the front gate, so they didn't see exactly where she had emerged from. The door opened, and she knew not to see surprised to see Negan stood there, as he often checked in with the people on watch when he arrived back. He eyed her as she approached him.

"Where the hell did you just come from?", He questioned as he walked up to her.

"Got separated from Dwight… is he not back yet?", She lied, her eyes darted behind him as if she was truly looking for the man.

"Nah, not yet", one the guards yelled down to her.

"Well he better get back soon. I've got a bone to pick with that son of a bitch", Negan muttered as scratched at his beard.

"What did he do?", Michonne frowned at him.

He shook his head, dropping an arm across her shoulders, "I'll tell you about it later. Come on, let's go have dinner"

She involuntarily tensed when he touched her, but tried to hide it by folding her arms as they walked to the building. It was proving difficult for her to behave normally towards him as the days rolled on and he wasn't trying to hide his dark side anymore, though, she questioned if he ever really hid it that well in the first place. She was coming to terms with the fact that she was foolish for just hoping he was on good behaviour when she was gone. The first conversation they had when he rescued her from Alexandria still haunted her and she found herself watching him, wondering how long she had being looking at him through rose tinted glasses.

She felt as if she owed him her life. He had done so much for her, carried her when she could barely carry herself, and in her mind, she was in debt to him for it all. She knew he could be a caring man, she had been on the receiving end of it many times before, and the more she remembered, the harder the task of stopping him felt.

"I found this"

Michonne almost shook her head to rid herself of her thoughts. Negan held out a thin gold chain, with a gold 'A' pendant hanging from the middle of it. She felt as if her heart had stopped.

"Here. Take it", He insisted, leaning across his desk to give it to her. They were in the room that was appointed as their office, and days had passed since she showed the other communities their home.

She straightened up as she took it, "You didn't have to"

"I know. But I did", He shrugged, sitting back in his seat as he watched her reaction.

She dropped it into her other hand and shoved it in the tiny pocket of her leather pants, "Thank you"

A knock at the door caused them both to look towards it, as Negan called, "What?!"

The door opened, and Michonne's stomach dropped. Dwight walked in, and she immediately noticed that half of his face was burned horribly. He kept his head slightly dipped as he walked further into the office to join them.

"What happened to you?", She breathed, her eyes scanning up and down the affected area.

"He was just a little clumsy, that's all", Negan answered, shrugging as he looked around the room aimlessly.

Her eyes narrowed at him, "What happened?"

Dwight seemed to be holding his breath as his gaze dropped to the floor.

"You did this to him", Michonne tilted her head at Negan to catch his roaming gaze.

He sighed, "He was fucking one of my wives. I had to teach him a lesson"

She looked to Dwight, who continued to say nothing at all.

"Now, what can I do for you, scumbag?", Negan asked, turning to face the scarred man.

"I want to take a group out tomorrow, go check out further west-", Dwight answered.

"Hey Negan! One of the collections was short, fuckers put a bunch of half empty shit in there!", Everyone looked at the Radio on Negan's desk as it barked out information, "It's from the kingdom!"

Negan slowly inhaled as he sat forward and snatched the receiver up, "Alright. Where's Wade?"

"We don't know! Haven't seen that piece of shit for like two weeks!"

Michonne only pursed her lips as little at the mention of the man they killed, while Dwight, stared at the Radio.

"For God's sake", Negan growled, running his hand over his mouth before speaking into the receiver, "Set up a group, tomorrow you get down there and bring me back somebody's fucking head"

Michonne's eyes widened at him, "What?"

Negan sat back, glancing over to Dwight, "Get out"

"Tell them that won't be necessary", Michonne instructed to Dwight before he could scurry away.

"Are you in a fucking dream 'Chonne? Did you hear what he just said-"

"You are not sending them to take off someone's head! We're lucky we even received anything at all, considering they aren't getting anything from this deal!"

"They're getting to wake up in the morning with their skulls intact", Negan smirked sinisterly. Dwight quickly backed out the room, closing the door gently behind him.

She looked into his dark brown eyes as they glowed from the afternoon sun, feeling as if a switch had just gone off in her mind, and she realised she was standing in front of evil personified, "Stop this or we're leaving"

His brow furrowed, "What the hell are you talking about?"

"If you don't stop this then we're leaving"

"Who is 'We'?"

"Everyone who is sick of this. Sick of you"

Negan's eyes darkened as he slowly stood, "You're included in that then?"

"I am", She bit at him.

"So you've decided otherwise?"

Her expression was stoic, and she took a step closer to his desk, "I told you I wouldn't support you with this"

He shook his head in a condescending manner before smiling at her, "Go ahead. Leave. Take whoever it is that has a fucking problem and leave"

Her eyes narrowed again, "You will let us leave peacefully-"

"I will let _you_ leave", He corrected, "And I hope you know what the fuck you're doing 'Chonne"

She inhaled, rolling her shoulders back as she turned and marched out the room. Her heart was thumping in her chest as she realised this was the beginning of the end.

"It's time", Was all she said to Dwight as she passed him in the hallway.

He knew what she meant, and his eyes widened as he quickly followed behind her. They had prepared for this moment, and all those who were ready to bring him down knew what to do when she punched the fire alarm on her way to her room. An almost deafeningly loud beep rang out through the building, signalling for them to pack up and move out.

Michonne only grabbed her katana and her leather jacket from her room. She didn't need anything else for the moment, as she planned to return eventually. She slammed the door shut and continued to march around, as some people stood around confused, and others sprinted past them. She ran down the staircase, a small group forming behind her as they raced to the front gate.

She knew chances of them leaving peacefully would be slim, but she was determined to lead everyone out, and only checked over her shoulder at few times see who else was following her.

By the time they made it outside, the small group had turned into a large one, that poured through the open gate and beyond the walls.

She snaked her way to the front, but keeping her eye on the building, as she knew the longer they were out there, the longer Negan had to plan to stop them.

"Michonne! The buses!"

Dwight yelled to her over the crowd as two school buses emerged from the woods, as well as two cars that drove either side. She gazed around her, noticing they could have done with more transportation, but it was too late to wish for such a thing.

Everyone began to pile into the buses, and she stayed between the two watching the scene in front of her. Her attention was drawn to the building when she saw something flicker in the light, and before she could do anything else, a hail of bullets shot into the crowd and the vehicles. Negan had snippers lined up on the fifth floor of the building, shooting from the windows as residents scattered around.

"Into the woods!", Michonne screamed repeatedly from behind the bus. Some heard her and did as they were told while others still tried to cram themselves on to the bus.

She ran ahead to the first bus and yelled at the driver, "Go!"

The man didn't need to be told twice as quickly started the vehicle. She ran back down to the second bus and signalled for the woman to drive with her hand, "Move!"

The buses began to drive, despite the bullets bouncing off the side and the roof. Michonne was horrified to see the bodies that lay on the floor by the front gate, but she powered on, yelling for others to follow her into the woods. Bullets seemed to whiz past her in all different directions, and she knew they were missing her on purpose, as she should have been dead once the buses had drove out the way.

When she finally found coverage in the trees, she looked back at the Sanctuary, saddened by the scene.

"Come on!"

She turned to the direction of Dwight's voice and was surprised to see him ahead of her. He was bleeding heavily from his arm, but still hurried her along.

The two of them took the lead, running ahead of the group that made it out on foot. It was a mixture of men and women, most of them were young but all looked scared beyond belief. Michonne wanted to stop and check to see if anyone had any life threatening wounds but they couldn't stay in the area for too long.

They ran until they were sure Negan wasn't sending a group after them. No one knew how long they had been walking for, but she knew they were all tired as they slowed.

"We need to find a car or something", Dwight panted, adjusting the ripped shirt that he used to stop the bleeding on his arm.

Michonne glanced behind her, "We need more than just one car"

Dwight mimicked her move, "Your right, maybe five"

She smirked for only a second, as she was trying to conserve all her energy. She was both physically and emotionally drained, and she was sure they weren't even a quarter of the way to their destination.

"Let's get out on the road, we're making too much noise on the leaves", She breathed, already leading the way.

When night fell they all realised they faced a new challenge, as they had limited visibility and needed to rest, but they were effectively in the middle of nowhere.

"We can find a barn or something?"

She could hear the conversation going on around her but she was in no position to speak up. Her throat was dry, her body felt heavy and a headache was on the horizon. She figured it was because it was because of hunger and dehydration, and she doubted anyone had grabbed anything to eat in the mad dash to leave. She was running on empty, and her body would punish her for being so selfish.

"What is that?"

She squinted into the distance, trying to stay alert. She was sure she could see headlights up ahead, but her vision began to blur and her legs shook from exhaustion. She fell to her knees and took a deep breath, hoping to regain herself in such a crucial time.

"Shit!"

A hand hooked under her arm in a bid to keep her upright, but there was no use. She was crumbling to the floor in a heap, and truth be told, she found the cold tarmac to be quite comfortable. Once her eyes closed she felt as if she was drifting off to sleep, and it was a pleasant moment.

The moment didn't last as long as she would have wished, as she felt herself being lifted off the ground. A familiar scent filled invaded her air space, and she was tempted to fight back, to get away from him, but all she could muster was a weak groan.

"I got you".

Rick's voice was cool and calm. She found it strange that she could still recognise his step pattern as he carried her. He still stomped but not as harshly, and she let his movements rock her into unconsciousness.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8:

Rick loaded the barrel of his Colt Python before shoving it in his belt. The anxiety he had suffered from for weeks had finally been put to rest and he was going into the battle with a new found confidence.

Rick knew the element of surprise was no longer in their favour, though he understood why Michonne had to make the move early. He also took note that most of the Savior's they brought in had some sort of wound, weather it was a graze, bruise, scratch or shot, while she was completely unharmed, despite blacking out from exhaustion. He figured Negan would only allowed her to go unharmed, which only further confused him when he thought of their relationship.

"Dad".

He looked to the seat behind him in the school bus, and Carl handed him a magazine for the rifle he also carried. Rick gave him a single nod as he took it from him, still feeling a little nauseated at the fact that his son was with them, but he prefer to have him at his side. He knew if he left Carl back at the safe zone then, he wouldn't have waited for their return.

"We're a mile away"

Rick looked out the windshield at Abraham's announcement, "Good"

He looked to the back of a bus, where a majority of his on residents where. He couldn't help but notice a slight bothered looking Dwight, and he knew exactly what the man was fretting about.

"It's easier this way", Rick reassured in a stern tone.

Dwight's eyes slid over to meet his, "I don't think she'll see it that way"

"Well I'm the one that's going to kill him, so I'll be the one she'll be after", Rick gave a little shrug with his admission.

"But we left her-"

"We left a lot of your people. It was nothing personal, just they were in no condition to fight. Her included"

Rick's words seemed to be of no help to Dwight, as he released a long suffering sigh. He couldn't help but be a little stunned at the man's new appearance, and though he tried not to stare, he wondered what could have inflicted such damage to his face.

"Negan did it. Hot iron"

Rick's eyebrows shot up, "Why?"

"My wife… is one of his wives"

His eyebrows dropped to a straight line.

"He has wives, three at the moment. A few girlfriend's too", Dwight snarled. "He found out about me and my wife"

Rick wasn't sure how to react to the information that was laid in front of him, but he couldn't help but ask, "Michonne is one of the wives?"

The other man looked at him like he was crazed he shook his head.

The revelation cleared up a little of his confusion, but that only made room for more. He needed to shake his own head to rid her from his thoughts, as he knew they were close to the compound.

"Here", Rick issued to Abraham as he stood and faced the back of the bus, "Alright, this is our stop!"

"Storm's coming", Abraham quipped as he looked up at the dark clouds that filled the sky.

Everyone began to ready themselves as the vehicles poured on to the parking lot in front of the building.

Rick's main focus was Negan. That was who he wanted, and that was who was setting his sights on. The man had brought him nothing but dismay since they crossed paths, and he cared only about stopping him.

"You stay by me, and if we get split up, you find one of the others and you stick with them, got it?", Rick warned Carl in a low tone.

Carl nodded in agreement, "Got it"

The quiet conversations died out as they filed out the vehicles, and a symphony of growls grew louder. Rick was astonished to see that the Savior's had tied even more walkers to the fence, but the new deterrents were chained by the neck, so were able to move a bit more freely than the others.

He continued to march on, already prepared to deal with the first obstacles.

"Shit!"

Movement could be seen at the checking point by the fence, and Rick imagined whoever was watching, had gone to alert the others.

"Stop right there!"

Rick eyes scanned the scene in front of him for the voice, but still called back, "Tyreese!"

The large man appeared, stepping away from everyone with the bazooka on his shoulder. He wasted no time shooting at the gate, and the heat from the impact cause everyone to take a step back. The walkers within range of the blast either blew up or caught fire, but most still unable to move far.

"The building", Ezekiel was by Rick's side, his eyes trailing up and down the structure.

"He's in there, he'll come out", Rick assured as he looked into the compound through the gaping hole in the fence.

The doors to the building flew open, and Savior's poured out, all armed and ready as they filled the courtyard. Negan appeared with dark eyes and a smug look on his face as he swung his bat.

"Well, well, well… what a surprise!", He mocked sarcastically.

Rick stared at the man.

"I can't be mad at you about the fence. I guess you're returning the favour", He tutted as he looked over the warped metal.

"You can surrender, if you'd like?", Rick offered.

Negan chortled, looking back at his little army, "You hear that? We can surrender! Let's all bow down to the killer cowboy!"

"You don't have to bow"

Negan's eyes scanned the sea of people outside his walls as his laughter died down.

"She's not here", Rick taunted, a ghost of a smile on his face.

Negan's eyes locked on his.

"Don't worry. She's perfectly fine"

The tall man smirked as he turned on his heel and stalked back into the courtyard, "You have the option to surrender too!"

The sound of trucks reversing drew Rick's attention to both ends of the parking lot. Savior's ran along both sides of the eighteen wheelers and opened the doors, freeing the walkers that were packed inside.

"Go!"

A few dozen of the mixed community members charged into the Sanctuary, ducking and diving behind the cement blocks that lined the remaining part of the fence. Gunfire rang out, and Rick was on his own personal mission as he watched Negan seek refuge behind a jeep.

He ducked further behind the block when a bullet whizzed past his ear, and he peaked behind him to see people in the building shooting too, most aiming at the remaining residents outside the fence.

Rick could see people dropping like flies, and his heart raced, "Sasha! The snipers!"

"On 'em!", The woman called back, lowering herself to see through the peephole on her weapon.

"I need to get over-"

Rick's sentence was interrupted by an a painfully loud bang, and he surveyed the area until he saw the jeep that Negan hid behind was on fire, but the man was nowhere to be seen.

"He's behind the truck!", Sasha informed from behind the next cement block.

Rick peered behind him and saw she was right, but he wouldn't be able to get to him for a while as both sides gave their all, and even his son was enthralled. More members snuck into the courtyard, while the others fought off the walkers that were fast approaching, drawn to the action.

"Ah shit!", Daryl growled, dropping to the floor, "Son of a bitch got my shoulder!"

Rick studied him, "Bad?!"

"Nah man! I'll be alright!"

Another explosion was heard, and another hole was made in the fence, hitting a fire engine that was being used as a lookout point.

"Stay with Sasha!", Rick yelled to his son as he crouched.

Carl glance down at him, "Okay!"

Rick ran along the fence as he aimed his rifle, shooting whenever he could as he approached another cement clock, closer to the truck. Negan was stood behind it, appearing every now and then to fire his weapon. Heavy rain drops began to fall, causing Rick to run his hand over his face as the crackling of thunder could be heard in the distance, drowning out the odd Screams the carried over the fence.

"Ah!"

Rick looked around for Ezekiel when he heard the man yell. He was on the ground, across the courtyard, holding his leg as he grimaced. Rick didn't take his eyes off him until late he saw someone rush over to help the other leader.

"There he is"

Rick nearly jumped when Jesus appeared beside him, seemingly from nowhere, "I need them to cover me"

"I can, everyone's a little busy right now", Jesus insisted as he peered behind the block, "Go now!"

Rick was on his feet again, but not for long as another two explosions could be heard going off. He saw the white truck he was heading to go up in smoke as Negan and another man dived from behind it. Rick's legs shook as he found his footing, looking behind him to see where the second explosion came from. One of the school buses beyond the walls was also on fire, and he hoped none of his people were seriously injured from it.

He turned back to look for Negan, but was instead greeted by the man's fist as he punched him square in the jaw.

"See? It's not nice is it?", The bully shook his head at him in disappointment, "I've wanted to do this for a long-"

Rick had no time to listen to the man monologue. As soon as he gathered his bearings, he delivered his own hit to the man's cheek, sending him stumbling back against the hood the truck. Negan recovered quickly, and the men began a full blown fist fight. While Rick moved swiftly, and was able to swing and few harsh blows, Negan was stronger, and his punches seemed more devastating. He uppercut Rick in his stomach, forcing him to double over in pain, and the other man sent another fist to his ribs. Rick's body trembled as he dropped to the floor, spitting blood to the floor.

"Come on fuckwit, get up. I'm not done with you"

Rick groaned as he summoned the strength to rise, as he wasn't done with either. As soon as he straightened up, Negan punched him in the cheek, but Rick swivelled back around and gave him a hit right back, sending him stumbling back against the hood of the truck.

He drew his python just as Negan raised his own gun, straightening up away from the truck.

"Well ain't this nice?", Negan smiled, showing off his blood stained teeth.

Rick blinked through the raindrops that fell fast around them.

"I knew you would be a pain in the ass-"

"You already said that", Rick snarled, his breath shallow as pain radiated through his chest, "Now make your move"

Negan, opened his mouth to say something, but stopped, choosing to grin instead. Rick soon realised why, as a blade came into his peripheral vision. The sword was aimed at his neck as Michonne stepped cautiously past him, placing herself beside Negan.

Rick eyed her, unsure of what his next move should be, as he was willing to shoot Negan right there and then, but he didn't want to have to fight Michonne to the death after.

"Remember", Negan raised his eyebrows at Rick, "You can surrender, if you like?"

Rick cocked the hammer on his weapon as he tilted his head. Michonne raised her blade even higher.

"Well, you had your chance-"

Negan barely uttered the last word out of his sentence, when the blade swung through the air. The movement was so quick, it took both men and moment to catch up with the scene before them. Negan's hand still held the gun as it lay on the floor, and the sound that left him could only be described as something akin to a wounded animal as he grabbed at his remaining limb. He dropped to his knees while the blood poured from him, and Rick watched as Michonne sheathed her katana, then punched Negan at the back of the head, rendering him unconscious.

The gun fire around them had seized, besides the members outside the walls that were still fighting off walkers. Michonne was crouched down beside Negan's body, wrapping his new wound in a bandage, which told Rick that she had planned to disarm him, quite literally.

"Get him inside!", She ordered, peering over her shoulder.

The remaining Savior's hesitated for a moment, before three of them ran over to them. They lifted the tall man off the ground and ran with him into the building.

Michonne was in front of Rick within the blink of an eye, "We'll patch him up, you put him in that cell of yours"

Rick narrowed his eyes at her.

She turned on her heel, stomping back to the building.

Rick tore his eyes away from her to look at the others, and they were all looking at him expectedly. He didn't know what to say, as he still wanted Negan dead, but he couldn't argue with Michonne's idea for him either, "We're taking him back to Alexandria! He's gonna be put in a cell!"

Everyone wore the same confused look he had only seconds before.

"It doesn't matter where he is, he's not going to be in charge of anythan' ever again! So if anyone who has a problem with that, now's your chance to say somethan'!"

The Savior's as they looked amongst each other, unsure of what to say or do, so they all remained quiet.

"We won't have any problem with you, as long as you don't have any problem with us! This is your opportunity to run the Sanctuary in a way that benefits everyone, not just one man!"

"We don't have to live in fear anything but them!", Dwight piped up as he pointed at the whole in the fence, "We don't need him!"

Former residents of the Sanctuary that fought beside Rick stepped into the courtyard and made their way over to the others. Rick exhaled, looking to his own people as they expressed their own relief. He wasn't free to do such a thing yet.

He went inside the building, not particularly sure of where he was heading, so he stopped the first person he saw, "Where did they take Negan?"

The woman pointed down the hallway she just appeared from, "The doctor's office is that way. The very end"

"Thanks", Rick breathed as he stalked down the long and wide hallway.

People were nervously poking their heads out from behind doors as he passed them, and he wondered how many people were hiding in the large structure. He was almost to the end when he saw Michonne step out of the very last door.

He slowed his pace as he approached her, "The people you brought yesterday, they wanna come back here, Dwight's talking to them all now"

She nodded, her gaze behind him, "Okay"

His eyes darted to the door, "What's going on with…"

She looked towards the door also, "They're sedating him"

Rick glanced behind him, "Alright"

"I'm going to come with him. I want to be there when he wakes up".

Rick turned his attention back to her, and nodded in agreement, "And uh… sorry about leaving without you-"

"Don't.", She raised her hand to stop him, "If I had gotten here and he was harmed, then you'd be sorry"

Rick's eyes dropped to her hand, then crawled back up to her face. Her eyes were sad, and she seemed deflated, but it didn't stop her from staring him down. Rick didn't think it was the time or the place for one of their mini Mexican stand-off, but whenever he looked in her eyes it was as if he was reduced to nothing.

"Is he still out?"

Dwight's voice pulled them both from their gaze, and Rick stepped back to face the man.

"He is", Michonne crossed her arms.

"Good. They want to talk to you about what happens here", Dwight pointed behind him with his thumb.

Rick cleared his throat as he left the two of them alone to talk. It felt strange to think that it was all over, and he knew he wouldn't relax anytime soon, but he had one less worry with Negan, and that was more than enough.

The remaining Savior's did indeed stay at the Sanctuary, while the residents of the Hilltop and Alexandria returned back to the Safe zone after gathering the bodies of the people they lost. Rick would never admit it aloud, but he was glad members of his family only came away with a few new wounds.

Michonne rode with a still heavily sedated Negan at the back of the school bus on the way home. Rick kept his gun in hand just in case.

"I told you she could help us".

Rick turned his head eerily slow to face his son.

"I did. That's all I'm saying", Carl insisted quietly, nursing the graze to his neck with a rag.

Rick exhaled, "You did. You obviously picked up on somethan' that I didn't, but that doesn't excuse what you did"

Carl gave a half-heartedly nod in agreement.

"I value your input, but you have to present it to me the right way. You sit down and you talk to me about it, and I'll always be more than happy to listen to you", Rick tilted his head to catch his son's gaze.

Carl nodded a little more enthusiastically, "I get it. I will"

"Good".

"...But I was right".

Rick smirked as he looked away from his son, too tired to argue with him. He found himself looking at the back of the bus again, where Negan lay on floor of the Isle, and Michonne sat over him, holding his hand between hers. He turned away, not sure why the sight annoyed him, but he made sure to keep his eyes to the front for the remainder of the journey.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9:

Michonne watched as Negan rolled on to his back, waking from his long slumber. He groaned, raising both his arms as if he was going to rub his hands over his face, but he stopped.

He examined his bandaged hand and growled, trying to sit up, "What the fuck-"

"Lay down", She instructed, causing him jump.

He squinted at her, "You have a lot of fucking nerve"

She blinked at him, "That's rich".

He looked around the cell, "Where the hell am I?"

"Alexandria", She sighed, resting her arms on her knees.

"What? Why?"

She inhaled slowly, "Because… we'll all get along better with you here"

Negan stared at her with nothing but disbelief, "You'll all get along better with me in here? How'd you come to that fucking conclusion?"

"What you were doing, was putting our people in danger-"

"Oh cut the crap Michonne!"

"No! You cut the crap!", She bit back at him, "You are the reason you're in here! Because you don't know how to lead without fear! You know you're bigger than most and you know you're stronger, so you use that to bully people into giving you what you want and I told you, I will not support you with that!"

"So you set me up? After everything-"

"Don't you dare!", She raised her hand at him, "You helped me when I was at my lowest. You put my son down for me when I couldn't. I will always appreciate and respect you for helping me when you didn't need too, but that does not mean I will continue to turn a blind eye to the type of man you are. You made me do this when you decided to become a tyrant. So yes, I helped set you up. Deal with it"

He was hardly impressed with her speech, "What happened to 'I'll protect you the same way you protected me?', huh? 'You won't let anybody hurt me'-"

"I stuck to my word. No one hurt you and you're protected in this cell", She shrugged.

"You cut my fucking hand off!", He yelled to her, his limb raised in the air.

"I never said I wouldn't hurt you!", She corrected, "That's the difference!"

His shook his head as he looked around the cell again, "Oh 'Chonne. What the fuck is this shit?"

"This is what it is now".

He snorted, "So let me guess, you're sole leader of the Savior's now?"

She shook her head, "No. Dwight is"

Negan's eyes bulged, a grin spreading across his face, "Oh that sneaky piece of-"

"No. I told him to do it. He didn't want to"

"Why him?", Negan's face pinched at the thought.

"Because he's capable and I believe he can do it. That's why"

He snorted again, "Yeah. We'll see how well that fucking works out"

She rolled her eyes at him.

"So you're working with the farmer now? Is that what's happening here?"

Michonne sighed, "I'm trying to work with all the other community leaders-"

"You know what I'm talking about. You came here after you left", He spat the words out of his mouth like venom.

"It was the safest place for the others", She shrugged, "I would have taken them anywhere that was safe-"

"He had a shit eating grin on his face when I saw him. Bet he thought he got the one up on me when he was in cahoots with you behind my fucking back-"

"Are you done?"

"Is he where your loyalties are now? Is that the kind of man you want to stand beside?"

She shook her head in exasperation, "I stand on my own and I have done for a while now-"

"But where do your loyalties-"

"My loyalties are with you. This cell won't change that, if anything this cell makes it easier"

"Easier for who?"

"Both of us. You can't do much in here, and I can rest assure knowing that", her eyes crawled up to him.

"I can't believe you cut off my hand", He was examining himself again, "After I let you leave-"

"But you had the others shot", She scowled at him, her eyes wincing.

He waved his hand dismissively, "So what".

She couldn't believe his disregard for his actions and she was sure her face registered her horror.

"You know what? If I'm such a bad guy, why are you in here with me? Why are your loyalties still with me? Why aren't you on the other side of that fucking door when you speak to me?"

"Because I know you. Because I know you're not completely rotten to the people you care about. I'm the only person you have and you were the only person I had, so I'm not turning my back on you"

He glared at her, " _Had_?"

She knew there was no point talking to him when he was in such a bad mood, so she slowly stood from her seated position against the wall, "I'm going doing you a favour here"

"How about you let me out instead?", He growled at her.

"Not gonna happen", Rick swiftly stepped in to view at to the door, opening it for Michonne to come out.

"What kind of fresh hell is this?", Negan threw his hand up in the air, "Why don't you just fucking kill me already?"

"Nope", Rick almost sang as he locked the door shut, "I mean, I wanted to. I planned to. But watching you suffer like this… you can't beat that"

Negan scowled at him.

Rick smiled at Negan before following Michonne out the home. To say it felt strange for her to be in Alexandria as a visitor, as opposed to a threat or co-conspirator, was an understatement. She narrowed her eyes at the street, where residents strolled the community looking much more carefree than she had previously seen.

"I don't think he'll be seeing the error of his ways anytime soon"

A part of her figured he had probably heard their conversation. Her eyes slid in Rick's direction, though she didn't look directly at him, "Yeah"

"Maybe in time… but I think you did the best thang for him"

She didn't say anything, though her body language showed she was listening.

He looked at her, "I guess I should apologise"

She frowned, her gaze dropping, "No need."

"No… there is", He insisted, tipping his head to catch her gaze.

She turned to him, "Don't let anyone open that door there unless he's asleep or its to let me in"

His eyes darted to the basement, then back up to hers, "Fine."

She turned back to the street, "...I'll come be back at the end of the week"

"The kingdom will be here… Ezekiel, he wants to have a… I don't know what to call it, a party, I guess? To celebrate… the end of it all"

She pulled a face before she could consider a better reaction.

He smirked, "Yeah. I think I thought the same thang you're probably thinking but… I guess it will be good way to raise people spirits again so… why don't you tell the others, they're more than welcome to come"

She slowly nodded, though the idea, quite frankly horrified her, "I'll be sure to pass on the message"

"Rick!"

They both turned to the call, and saw Daryl coming up the street towards them with the large man Michonne knew to be Abraham. She decided it was time for her to leave, and started stepping towards the entrance.

"You gonna stay for a while?"

She looked back over her shoulder at Rick, "Maybe another time"

"...Alright", He nodded, slowly turning to face his friends.

The relaxed tone of their conversation was something that played on her mind as she left Alexandria. The little smile he gave her was the first expression she'd witnessed from him that wasn't serious. It didn't occur to her that he'd be one of the people most relieved to see the end of Negan's terror. If she was being completely honest with herself, a small part of her wondered if he could actually be a pleasant man to be around. While she didn't particularly dislike him, though she had valid reasons to, she was content with keeping him at arm's length.

The Sanctuary was in higher spirits than Alexandria. The environment was substantially more relaxed, and people were working together to mend the front of the compound.

"How was he?", Dwight asked when she arrived at the front gates.

She raised an eyebrow at him, "You can guess"

Dwight gave her a crooked smile, "I probably can…"

"You're getting rid of the walkers?", She asked as residents where removing the remaining corpses from the fence.

"Yeah…", the man looked back over his shoulder, "I always thought it was creepy?"

"It was...I can't really disagree with that…", She nodded as she watched them work, "Oh… there's gonna be a get together at Alexandria at the end of the week… to celebrate the fall of Negan"

Dwight raised his eyebrows at her, "Really?"

"Yeah. Rick told me that everyone's welcome", It felt so strange for her to say the other leaders name aloud.

"Sounds good. I think it would be a great way for us all to get familiar with one and other. I want us to be able to work together, trust each other"

Michonne smiled at him, "You can make it all happen. I know you can"

The man sent her a bashful smile back, "Well I hope so. I'm trying here"

"Yeah", her gaze dropped, "I'm thinking about staying at Alexandria… well I've thought about it, I need to talk to Rick...but I'd feel better being closer to him...just in case he does try something stupid"

Dwight seemed to be thinking about it, "I think you'd be putting a lot of people's minds at ease… especially mine"

"I think so too"

It was an idea she was toying with, but the only positive side of it would be that she could keep an eye on Negan. She didn't think staying at Alexandria would be a negative thing, but it wasn't her home, and she figured it would take her a while to adjust.

She made sure to travel to the Hilltop during the week with a small group, taking as much as the Savior's could offer as a form of peace offering. She had come to like Jesus, as the man had a similar, peaceful disposition as Dwight. She couldn't help but be drawn to people like that.

The Hilltop seemed to be coming along well when they arrived. From what she had heard, Negan had left in tatters, but their wall was almost completely rebuilt. The stalls and trailers were being worked on as the Savior's entered, and Michonne noticed a few people still looked at them wearily as they passed. She understood their scepticism, and tried her best to put on a more neutral and friendly expression.

Her eyes caught glance of familiar vehicles near the largest building, and she soon learnt that they weren't the only visitors. The teenager who had helped her stepped in to view, and gave her a warm smile as they approached the door. Her eyes darted to the bandage on his neck, and she hoped her wasn't badly injured.

"We're gonna unload", Caine informed her from behind.

She looked over her shoulder, "Alright, I'll come help in a little while"

The man nodded, and led the others back to their vehicle to hand over their olive branch.

She turned back to the teenager, "I never did get your name?"

"Carl", He answered, "And you're Michonne"

"I am", She gave him a single nod, "I never got to thank you for letting me out. I'm sure your dad wasn't pleased with that…"

"Yeah… he was pretty mad but, he gets why I did it now", the boy assured with a small smile, "He's in there with Jesus and Maggie now"

Michonne frowned at the name she didn't recognise, "Okay, well I should get in-"

"Shit! Walkers!"

The two of them spun around when they heard the call, and Michonne unsheathed her weapon without a second guess.

A small group was making its way towards the Hilltop, and she assumed it was from the racket the residents were making as they fixed their homes. She could have kicked herself for not bringing weapons for the people to protect themselves, as most only carries spears and machetes, and most looked like they barely knew what to do with them.

She was the first in line to disperse the dead, her sword swinging in all directions as quickly as she could. It was a technique she preferred, since she was already substantially faster than the living, and up against the dead she moved at lightning speed. She could hear someone beside her, and glanced over to see Jesus fighting his way next to her. Gunshots rang out around her, and she could only hope that whoever was shooting had a good enough aim to avoid her. The shooters took down the remaining corpses, while she impaled head of her last target.

It was only when she stopped moving did she feel an stinging pain in her arm, and she was slightly annoyed to see she had been grazed by a bullet. She looked back at the Hilltop and saw a few Alexandrians lowering their weapons, and none of them looked apologetic, so she assumed none knew they'd hit her. She groaned, flicking her sword.

"Thanks for that", Jesus breathed, pulling his knife free from a skull.

"No problem", She scanned over the bodies in front of her, as she stepped over them.

He followed her back up to the community, "We can wrap that up for you"

"It's fine", She insisted, peaking at it again, "Just a graze"

"Better to wrap it up than have it exposed"

"You have a point"

"What brings you by?"

Michonne waved her hand in the direction of their truck, "Thought we'd help out"

Jesus's eyes lit up, "Thank you for that"

"It's the least we can do. Most of its probably yours anyway"

He chuckled, his eyes flashing with amusement, "You're probably right about that"

Rick shifted his stance as they approached him, tucking away his weapon, "I think I might have caught you"

"No, I think that was me", Carl admitted apologetically, "It was hard to get a clear shot… you were moving pretty quick"

She shook her head, not wanting to worry the boy, "It's okay, I've had worse"

"Come on, I'll take you to Richards", Jesus offered.

She sighed, but followed after him anyway. The paediatrician did his best to wrap up her arm, and she managed to refrain from hitting him when it hurt. It was a quick task and she soon left to help the other Savior's unpack the remaining items. The few Alexandrians that where there helped rebuild what they could. Michonne thought it was a nice gesture, and she knew Dwight was striving to have that kind of relationship with the other communities. She felt for a her friend, as he'd probably have to do a lot to prove that he wasn't Negan, and nor would he turn, like the previous leader.

"He's doing just fine in case you're wondering"

She slammed the truck door shut and turned to face Rick, "I know"

He raised an eyebrow at her, "You do?"

"Yeah", She shielded her eyes from the sun as she looked at him.

He nodded, his gaze dropping, "To be honest? I'm surprised you trust him with me… after everythan'?"

She slowly inhaled, "Yeah well, I think I've made it pretty clear what would happen if anyone touches him"

His brow furrowed as his eyes grew cloudy, "I understand that, but if he hurts any of my people... then I'll kill him"

The battle began as she glared at him, "That won't be a problem if we stick to our deal"

"He has to be fed. His bathroom's a bucket. We only send someone in when he's asleep, but otherwise, he needs to learn to cooperate. He doesn't hurt the people that are looking after him and I won't have to kill him"

She barely blinked.

"I think that's fair", He cocked his head at her, "Don't you?"

She pursed her lips in annoyance, and his focus dropped to her mouth for a second, before crawling back up to her eyes.

"Fine", She finally bit out.

He took a small step back, "I think we can get along as long as he behaves himself. You wanna protect him and I understand why that is but-"

"What do you mean you understand why that is?", She narrowed her gaze on him.

His eyebrow raised again, "I mean, what I just said"

Her mind flashed back to her time with Negan in the cell, and she realised he had heard all of their confrontation. Anger fuelled her words, "I don't want you around when I see him"

He sniggered disbelievingly, "I'm not agreeing to that"

"I don't want you listening in on my conversations", She enforced, her finger pointing at her chest.

"I can be wherever I please on my ground", He closed the space between them, "If you don't like that, then feel free to build your own cell and take him back. I don't give a damn where he is as long as he ain't hurting anyone, so what's your pleasure?"

Their faces were inches from each other, she could smell the his breath laced with mint, and the faint scent of right guard on his clothes. It wasn't the time or the place, but something in her was about to give way as he invaded her personal space.

She stepped back, needing air, "Don't talk to me unless it's to tell me that there's something wrong with him"

He looked as if he was confused for only a moment, but his face soon returned to its usually stern expression, "Deal"

He turned and stalked away from her, while she spun on her heel and walked the other way. She didn't know why she was so angry but she could barely focus; all she could think about was how much she couldn't stand him. All she could see in her mind was his face, his eyes glaring into hers as he argued with her. She released a low growl as she shook her head, desperate to dispose of all thoughts of him, but it was proving difficult.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10:

"Have you seen outside? It looks great"

Rick looked up from feeding his daughter, "Really?"

"Yeah. They really went all out with the decorations", Carl nodded as he opened the kitchen door.

"That's great then", Rick breathed, spooning another load of applesauce in to Judith's mouth.

"Maggie found a dress for Judith, she brought it over earlier"

"I'm sure she'd love to get it dirty", He teased, grinning at his messy daughter, "She's gonna need a bath before we put her in it"

Carl stopped and looked at his father, "You know she can feed herself, right?"

"I know, but I just wanted to do it. I missed doing stuff like this", He admitted.

Carl rolled his eyes as he smiled, "Alright"

"How y'all doing?" Daryl strolled in the kitchen with his crossbow over his shoulder.

"Hey", Carl greeted.

"What's going on?", Rick turned to him.

"Nothing, thinking about heading out tomorrow"

His eyebrows rose, "Really?... you taking someone with you?"

Daryl shrugged as he stroked Judith's hair, "Maybe. Dunno who though"

"I think Tara might be up for the challenge?"

His friend seemed to mull over the idea as he took a seat opposite them, "I'll keep an eye out for her"

Rick scooped Judith out of her highchair as he and took her over to the sink, "You gonna hang around today?"

The other man snorted, "If they have anythan' strong to drink, sure"

Rick chortled as he wiped Judith's mouth with a wet paper towel, "I'm sure you can find somethan' to drink"

"Dwight's group coming?"

His smile slowly began to fall, "I'm not sure. I told, uh, what's her name… so we'll see"

It was a childish move. He knew her name, he'd gotten comfortable using it, but after their last encounter, he didn't wish to mention her.

"Alright", Daryl watched him for a moment from beneath his hair, before looking elsewhere.

Rick wasn't particularly looking forward to the festivities, but his family were, so he tried his best to match their spirits.

Once he had washed and dressed Judith in her special occasion wear, he handed her over to his son so he could get himself ready. Outfit choices were limited, so he settled for a black and white checked button down that was almost tight, with a pair of grey jeans. It felt strange for him to appear to dress up, as he'd gotten used to putting on anything that was clean and could fit. The temptation to shave his beard off again was rife, but he settled with a trim instead. When his miniature transformation was complete, he almost felt as if he was in his past life, and the thought was a sad one.

The community did look well decorated and Rick found himself very impressed with it all. He didn't even know where they would have gotten a majority of the tablecloths and streamers from, but he admired the scene all the same.

Socialising wasn't a strength for him. The idea of 'small talk', made his eyes roll. He would try his best to interact with the people around him when they approached him, but it was difficult to behave, what would have been considered as normally, when they were living in such a time.

"Hey"

His attentions turned to Jessie, who stood a foot away from him, offering him a polite smile, "Hey Jessie"

"This is going well…", She motioned the rest of the street, "It was great thing... what you did... stopping the Savior's"

Rick shook his head as he looked over the crowd of people, "No, It wasn't down to me at all, I just helped"

She sighed, her attentions turning to Judith, "She looks great"

"Yeah…", He agreed, smiling as his daughter kept craning her neck to look at everyone.

"I hope you can see that I'm trying here…"

Rick exhaled, losing all patience, "Jessie why don't you go enjoy the party?"

Her eyes widened a fraction, "Oh yeah, of course… Uh, you two enjoy yourselves"

"Thanks", He watched her walk away with a shudder, whispering to his daughter, "Sorry for leaving you alone with her before"

Judith looked at him with her big brown eyes and smiled excitedly, though Rick doubted she knew what he was saying.

"How you holding up?", Maggie nudged him as she stood by his side, her hand resting on her rounded stomach.

Rick bounced Judith on his hip, hoping no one realised he was using her as shield, "Good. You?"

"Same", She smiled as she took hold of Judith's hand and kissed it, "Hey pretty girl!"

"Thanks for the dress. She seems to like it too"

"No problem… hey, have you spoken to Ezekiel yet?"

Rick's top lip almost curled, "No. Not yet"

"Come on. Let's get this over with", Maggie insisted, resting her hand flat on his back as she urged him to walk.

Rick groaned, but still did as he was told. He respected the younger woman greatly, and if it had been anyone else pushing him to do something he didn't wish to, they would have soon regretted it.

Ezekiel was sat at one of the tables, engrossed in conversation with Jesus, his hands flailing as he spoke. Rick couldn't barely stand the man, and found his eccentricities draining, but he did his best to appear friendly.

Maggie prayed Judith from him, "How are you doing Ezekiel?"

The grey haired man grinned at them, "Fantastic! And how are you all doing?"

"Good", Rick nodded, wishing he had his daughter back.

"Rick I'd love for you to join us", The man pulled a chair around, between he and Jesus.

"Go right ahead, I've got her", Maggie slowly stepped away, leaving Rick with no choice but to join them.

"We were just discussing trades, what we could all start growing-", Jesus began to inform.

"How we can stop the chance of us all handing over the same things", Ezekiel briefed.

"Right", Rick scratched his brow with his thumb, "What do you have in mind?"

"Where is the Savior's new leader? I expected her to be here so we could include her in this?"

Rick tensed involuntarily, "Don't know"

"She'll be here", Jesus confirmed, leaving Rick to wonder how he could be so sure.

"Great", Ezekiel beamed, clapping his hands together.

Rick would have felt so much better about the conversation if they hadn't discussed Michonne. To say the woman confused him, would be an understatement. He genuinely believed the two of them had found mutual ground, but she was so defensive about Negan that it was putting them back on rocky ground.

He understood that she had a child, and that Negan had had to kill that child for her, which was a predicament he would never wish to be in himself, but it seemed she wanted to keep it all a secret. While he wasn't expecting her to broadcast her past, he just wanted her to know that he could see why she bound herself to the man, even though he didn't agree with their friendship. He thought Negan was the least deserving of such a person in his life.

He found himself stuck beside Ezekiel for quite some time, and he was grateful to have Jesus there as some kind of buffer between the two of them. The loud man was in the middle of telling then another tall tale of his, when Rick started to notice residents from the Sanctuary sprinkled in the crowd. Evening was rolling around and he wasn't expecting and of the Savior's to come, despite Jesus's assurance. It was then he saw her.

Her dreads where in a high ponytail, and she wore a black halter top beneath her leather jacket. Her black, ankle length skirt had a thigh high split in it, exposing her leg as she strolled beside Dwight. Rick's eyes snapped shut for a second, and he forced his gaze elsewhere.

"Dwight!", Ezekiel boomed, raising both hands in the air.

Rick could have killed him. The two Savior's approached them, and they all stood to greet their late arrivals.

"Michonne, isn't it?", Ezekiel took her hand in his.

"It is", She looked amused with the man who seemed to fall in love with the very sight of her.

"Ezekiel", the grey haired man was almost drooling over her, his eyes locked on her face.

Rick was repulsed, to say the least.

"How are you guys doing?", Dwight asked, trying his best to ignore the flirtatious display beside him.

"We're good", Jesus answered, biting back a smile.

"Sorry we arrived so late, we've been having trouble with walkers all morning"

"At the Sanctuary?", Rick's ears perked up.

"Yeah. We think there's a bigger herd heading our way or somethings drawing them in", Dwight sighed, "We got the fence fixed, parked a few buses around the entrance just in case"

Rick nodded as he stored the information away for later.

"What a woman", Ezekiel sighed as he shamelessly watch Michonne walk away.

"Where'd she go?", Dwight frowned.

"To go see that pig, Negan"

A small smile tugged on the corners lips, for several reasons. The first being was Ezekiel reaction. The second, was knowing that he had the key to both the front door and the Negan's cell. It was another childish move, but the fact that she would have to come and ask him for it made him snicker. If she thought she could come to Alexandria and ignore him in his own home, Rick was going to show her otherwise.

"So what was you saying Ezekiel?", Rick grinned, taking a swig of his beverage.

The other man wasted no time jumping back into his story, and Rick tried to listen, but once the man's exaggerated arm movements began, he lost all interest.

"Hey Rick", Maggie approached him, holding a sleeping Judith on her shoulder, "I'm gonna take her inside"

"Oh no, let me do that-"

"No need. I'm tired too, is alright if I take her home?"

He hesitated for a moment, "Sure, if you want but if she wakes up-"

"I got her Rick, I can use the practise anyway", She tapped his arm with her free hand as she turned and walked away. Glenn was stood a few feet away, and gave him a nod as he waited for his wife to join him.

Rick's line of sight was interrupted by Michonne, as she stood in front of him with an unamused expression. He raised an eyebrow at her.

"I want to see him", was all she said.

"I'm sure you asked me not to talk to you?", Rick tilted his head at her in a mocking fashion.

She scowled at him, "May I have the key to go and see Negan please?"

He shook his head, "I only trust the key with a few people"

"Then find one of those people so they can let me in to see him"

He looked around, his eyes sailing past Sasha, Daryl, Tyreese and Abraham, all who were near enough for him to call over, "I can't see anyone I usually trust"

She squinted at him, her lips poised to object.

"If you'd like for me to escort you over there, then I don't mind, as long as you don't have a problem with where I stand?"

She rolled her eyes, spinning on her heel and marching away. Rick bit his lip as he placed his cup on the table and followed behind her. He wished he knew what it was about her that made him act so out of character, but he couldn't help himself. He was starting to like watching her come unhinged, it was as if he was drawing her out of her shell, forcing her to show him another expression, other than just stoic.

When they reached outside the basement, Michonne stood aside so he could open the door. He shoved it open, allowing her to step in first.

Negan was curled up on his bed and appeared to be sleeping. She looked at the door, then at Rick, expecting him to open it.

Rick barked, "Hey! You got a visitor!"

Michonne sent him another glare.

Negan groaned as he rolled on his back, "Can you please, shut the fuck up?"

Rick opened the cell door, letting Michonne in, before slamming it shut, causing Negan to curse a few more times. He stepped to the front door and leaned on the frame as he gave them a little privacy. He didn't mean to eavesdrop previously, but they were arguing within earshot, so he listened. She was sure to talk in a more hushed tone this time around, while Negan didn't.

"What the fuck are you wearing?"

Rick snarled at the other man's comment, and hoped Michonne put him in his place for it.

"Look. I get it now, you can go run around with that fucking killer cowboy and his tree hugging, sandal wearing, hippie fuckwit friends, and just leave me alone, alright?"

"Stop being ridiculous!"

Rick inhaled slowly, tipping his head as he tried not to listen to their argument further. He was figuring out the dynamic between the two of them, and while he understood that it was platonic, he still struggled to understand why their friendship bothered him, and why he was so interested. He peaked over his shoulder when he heard footsteps at the door. He cautiously stepped over, opening the door for a visibly annoyed Michonne. She rushed past him, and he pulled the door closed.

He scowled at Negan, "I don't think you need this light on. Let's see if you can piss in that bucket in the dark".

"Your days coming, you fucking parasite", Negan growled at him.

"So is yours!", Rick called as he switched off the light and slammed the front door, locking it behind him.

He skipped up the stairs and was surprised to see Michonne hadn't gone far. She stood on the sidewalk, her arms folded as she looked over at the party down the street.

Rick huffed, shoving the keys back in his pocket, "You should probably leave him alone for a while"

She didn't attempt to say anything, or even look at him.

"He knows he can count on you. You stop going for a while, he might appreciate you for coming the next time".

She sighed, shaking her head, "I don't want to talk to him about him anymore"

Rick frowned, "Well I guess there's nothing else I can say to you then"

Her eyes slid in his direction, and for a moment, he was sure he saw her smile, "That's right."

Rick watched her walk ahead, unsure as to why it took so long for his legs to work, but he was glad when they did. They went right back to their original table, where Ezekiel was still talking everyone to their graves. The man's eyes lit up when he saw Michonne again, and it annoyed Rick to see him fall over himself to speak to her. She barely gave the man a smile and yet he was already picking wedding dates.

It made Rick uncomfortable to watch.

The four leaders and Michonne all sat discussing future plans for their communities for the remainder of the party, while their residents enjoyed themselves around them. Rick was able to bare it all, as he had more than one person between he and Ezekiel. He tried his utter best to only look at Michonne when she spoke, and tore his eyes away from her when she finished. He learnt that she had the ability to make rational and reasonable decisions, and seemed quite the capable leader, and he struggled to comprehend why she hadn't taken over the Savior's. Dwight seemed to look to her for approval of his plan a the man obviously needed her.

As the day came to an end, so did their discussions, and Rick informed their visitors that they were welcome to stay the night, as they had the room to accommodate them, since most of the Hilltop residents had moved back to their home.

He was surprised when Michonne agreed to stay, and he personally walked she and Dwight to the Monroe's old home.

"Everything's pretty easy to find", He explained as he walked up the steps, "But if you need help with anythan' then just come and ask"

"Haven't slept in a house like this for so long", Dwight sighed, looking around as Rick opened the door.

Rick strolled inside first, flicking on the lights as he did, "It has five bedrooms so… hope you don't mind if we send a few more people over if they run out of space over there"

"That's fine with us", Dwight shrugged as he looked back at Michonne.

She nodded as if her mind was elsewhere, "Fine"

"Bathroom?"

Rick pointed up the stairs with his thumb, "Up there"

"Thanks", Dwight slipped past him and rushed up the stairs.

He turned back to Michonne, "The fridge should have-"

"I want to be able to keep a close eye on Negan", She announced, her eyes landing on him, "Would you allow me to stay here?"

Rick took a small step back, not expecting her to request such a thing, "You wanna move to Alexandria?"

"...If it's possible?"

"Well it is, but we'd have to come up with some ground rules-"

"Fine", She gave him a single nod.

Rick raised an eyebrow at her, "You don't have a problem with that?"

She rolled her shoulders back, "No, I don't have a problem with that, Rick"

He inhaled slowly, "Alright then. You can stay here"

"Thanks", She casually stepped into the living area, leaving Rick to stare at her back.

The prospect of her moving to his community left him feeling strange. He wasn't against the idea, but he didn't know how he'd fare seeing her every day, especially as her reason behind moving was down to being closer to Negan. He was sure that man would be the reason they wouldn't see eye to eye, and he refused to have Negan interfere with his life any further.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11:

Michonne sat on the bed in the Monroe's home contemplating whether to visit Negan. The last time they spoke, they had gotten into an argument rather quickly, and while she knew he'd still be very angry with her, she was hoping he'd at least calmed.

"You up?", Dwight called from the other side of the door.

"Yeah", She called back, her throat dry and horse.

"I'm going to get some coffee on, you want anything?"

She sighed, forcing herself to stand. She opened the door, "I'll come down"

In the light of day she understood why Negan questioned her outfit choice. While it was something she would have worn in her previous life, it wasn't something she'd see as practical in the new world. She didn't know why she dressed up in such a way, but at the time, she thought it would be a nice change. She certainly wasn't hoping to catch anyone's attention, though she caught Ezekiel's.

The man was nice to her, and he was attractive, but a little too flirtatious for her liking. She could see how he had become a leader however, as the man could be bullish, much like Rick. He was another person she was growing tired of.

"What time do you want to leave?"

Michonne poured the hot water into her cup, humming, "And hour or so? I wanted to take a look around… I talked to Rick about moving here yesterday"

"What did he say?", Dwight put down his cup to look at her.

"He agreed, said there's going to be ground rules though"

"Like what?"

"Whatever he can think of on the spot to annoy me"

Dwight chuckled with his mouth closed as he shook his head, "Maybe… Are you going to see Negan?"

She sighed, "Another one that wants to annoy me"

"I was actually thinking of paying him a visit…"

Michonne raised an eyebrow at the man, "No."

"I just wanted to explain to him why we all did what we did-"

"He knows why. And you don't owe him an explanation. I don't want any of the Savior's to think they owe him something-"

"Neither do you? But you keep going down there?"

She stared at him for a few moments, then shook her head, "I'll finish my tea when I get back, then we can start getting everyone together"

Dwight seemed to relent on the discussion. She trusted Dwight, almost as much as she would say she trusted Negan, but she wasn't ready to divulge anything to him.

She stalked out the home and down the street, looking for someone, anyone, but Rick to give her a tour of the community. While she knew she wouldn't have much influence on Alexandria as a resident, she couldn't help but have questions about how things ran.

Much to her dismay, she saw Rick first, standing on a front porch of what she assumed was his home, holding a toddler. Her heart began to race in her chest at the sight of the young child, but she wouldn't allow herself to run away. She kept her head up as she placed herself on the pavement in front of his home.

"Can someone show me around?", She asked, her eyes locked on him.

He bounced the little girl on his hip as he looked down at her, then slowly began to walk towards his front door, "Carl!"

Moments passed, and the teen appeared at the door, "Yeah?"

"Take your sister for a little while. I'll be back", Rick handed his daughter over to the teen, "She's probably tired"

"Alright", Carl gave the little girl an exaggerated smile as he turned back into the home.

Michonne looked towards the rest of the street as Rick made his way over to her, feeling as if she was intruding on his family's exchange.

He began walking ahead of her, and she followed, eyeing the homes as residents began to appear, "We have a pantry, an armoury, infirmary and a church, that we mainly use for meetings but… they do other thangs there too"

Much to her confusion, he lead her towards the watchtower, where he stomped up the stairs, a little grunt leaving him every so often. She really wish she found someone else to give her a tour, as he seemed to have an attitude about doing it himself.

When they reached the top of the tower, He sent away a young man who stood watch, and he began pointing at the buildings they could see below, "Armoury. Infirmary. Pantry. Church. We grow crops there, and there. There's a small burial over there for residents"

She squinted, recording all the information he gave her.

"Everybody gets a job here, so anything you feel like you could offer?"

She gave a little shrug, "Quite a few things actually"

He folded his arms as he leaned against the wall, "You were one of the leaders at the Sanctuary?"

"I was"

He slowly nodded, "I'm not sure if everybody would be comfortable putting you in such a position right away..."

She looked at him.

"We'll let you get familiar with everyone first, see how it goes from there"

"Fine."

"Now the rules; no one is allowed to go beyond the walls without good reason or alone"

She rolled her eyes as she crossed her own arms, "Yeah."

His tone grew stern, "And we settle disputes as a group, no one gets to make a decision regarding the rest of us on their own"

"Yeah."

"We won't stand for killing, unless we're under attack. And we don't stand for anyone putting someone or others in danger"

"Got it."

"Now, with Negan"

Her eyes narrowed at him as he stepped closer.

"You'll be free to see him when you please, but I stand by my point, if he hurts any of my people, I'll kill him. And If you're living here then that makes you one of us, so that rule goes for you too, _especially_ if you're going in that cell with him"

He almost had her engaging in one of their countless staring contests when she snapped her eyes shut at him, turning her gaze elsewhere, "That won't be a problem"

"I hope not", He didn't move, still invading her personal space, "When do you plan to move in?"

She thought about it, "I want to make sure everything's fine back at the Sanctuary… then get my things"

He nodded, his eyes still burning into the side of her face, "Fine. Tomorrow?"

She slowly inhaled, preparing to face him again, "Tomorrow."

"We'll have somethan' ready for you then. Come on", She had barely blinked, and he was already making his way back down the stairs.

Hearing him say he would kill Negan if he hurts her left a strange taste in her mouth. She knew Negan wouldn't hurt her, not just because of who she was to him, but the man didn't take interest in hurting women entirely, in fact, such a thing disgusted him. That wasn't what bothered her however, it was knowing Rick would use that as means to kill him. She hadn't even officially moved in yet.

"Well good morning!", Ezekiel greeted from further down the street as they left the tower.

"Great", Rick muttered under his breath, though Michonne heard him. She smirked, causing Rick to look at her. She raised her eyebrows at him innocently, before rolling get her eyes back to Ezekiel.

"How are you both doing on this fine morning?", The leader queried as he approached them.

"Good, thank you", Michonne answered.

"Any problems?", Rick asked, his tone still stern.

"No, none at all. The home was perfect", Ezekiel responded, "I actually wanted to know when everyone was planning on leaving?"

"Soon", Michonne's eyes trailed behind him when she saw a few Savior's stepping in to view, "Very soon"

"We should all come together more often, many people enjoyed themselves yesterday and this is what we want to restore in our residents", Ezekiel spoke proudly, hands on his waist as he looked around the community, "We're doing a great thing here"

Michonne slowly nodded in agreement, while Rick stared at the man, his top lip itching to curl.

She imagined Rick probably agreed with Ezekiel views, just not the way he presented them.

The other groups soon left Alexandria to return to their homes, and Michonne was well and truly sad to say goodbye to her home.

When she and Negan initially found the abandoned factory, they already had a few people with them that they had found along the way, but they didn't expect their camp to grow so large. If someone had told her things would turn out the way they had, she'd think of them crazy. Despite it all, she was excited for the future. Excited to see how so many communities could help rebuild civilisation. She didn't expect it to return to the world it was before any time soon, but she was ready to see how much they could achieve.

She was in the middle of packing her bag when a knock at the door caught her attention, "Come in!"

The door creaked open, and Sherry popped her head in the room, "Hey, are you free to talk?"

Michonne looked down at the clothes folded on her bed and gave a little shrug, "Guess so"

Sherry stepped into the room and closed the door behind her. She held her robe closed as she walked over to the bed and sat on the edge.

"You going somewhere?", She asked, her brows knitting together.

"Alexandria", Michonne exhaled, "Have to keep an eye on him"

Sherry looked at her with wide eyes, "So you're moving there?"

"I am…"

The woman's looked strangely disappointed, "I thought you'd be here to help Dwight… I know he's a little nervous about it all-"

"He can do it. I know he can. And I'm not abandoning this place, I'll still come around to help him if he needs it"

Sherry seemed to struggle with the news but still nodded, "Alright…"

Michonne froze with her shirt in her hand, "Something else?"

She sighed, her gaze darting all over the place, "I don't know how to say this… No one else knows and I don't know what to do…"

"...Go on"

"I'm pregnant"

Michonne's eyebrows crept up high, then fell back down, "Oh…"

"Yeah", Sherry shook her head, "I know it's Negan's. I haven't had a period for three months and… I was telling myself it could be because of something else... but I took a test and… well… yeah"

Michonne sat down, unsure of what to say to the woman to make her feel any worse about her situation, "I don't think you should hide it from Dwight..."

"I don't want to hide it from him, I really don't but at the same time… I don't want this to be the thing that breaks us. The only reason I agreed to be Negan's wife in the first place was so it would make things easier for us here and I know Dwight hated that, but it worked… until we got caught"

"Did he know you were having unprotected…"

Sherry shook her head, "Well he knew we were probably sleeping together but… we just never spoke about it. It was too hard on him"

Michonne bit the inside of her cheek as she thought about it, "You need to tell him. I know it won't be easy to but… he has to know, and you have to be ready for his reaction, good or bad…"

Sherry bowed her head, smoothing her hair back from her face, "I know. I know. But it's just so damn hard"

"Have you thought about Negan in all this? I mean, he obviously can't do anything about it-"

The woman's head snapped up, "I don't want him to know. At all. If he ever gets out and he-"

"He's not getting out. I'm making sure of that", Michonne reassured.

"But 'if'! There's always an 'if'! I don't want to go near him again"

"Do you think he'd hurt you? Or your baby?"

Sherry hesitated, her mouth opening and closing as she struggled to answer.

"He wouldn't. I can promise you that he would never do such a thing… he'd be mad", her eyes widened a fraction, "Oh, he'd be very mad, but not at you. At the fact that he's locked up and he has a child that he can't see"

Sherry watched her a few moments, "Do you think it would be good idea to tell him? You know him better than anyone?"

Michonne huffed, her mind racing as she quickly weighed up the positives and negatives of telling Negan about his child, "That's a tough question. I can see why you wouldn't want to tell him, but I still believe he has a right to know, and while I know he's a danger to almost everyone, he wouldn't be a danger to you or your baby"

The brunette continued to stare at her.

"This isn't my decision to make but… I advise you tell them both regardless-"

"Can you tell him?", Sherry's eyes widened as the idea popped into her head.

Michonne inwardly groaned at the notion, "I think it would be best coming from you-"

"You know that's not true. You can handle him, when he snaps you know how to snap back and I'm… I'm not like that. I get scared and nervous and I start to stutter…", the woman looked as if she was carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders, "Please?"

Michonne wanted to kick herself, "I'll tell him. But after you tell Dwight, okay?"

Sherry nodded hurriedly, "Fine. Fine. I'll do it. Thank you so much Michonne. I know none of this is your fault or your business but… I appreciate your help either way"

"Yeah…", Michonne sighed, her eyes sailing around her room, "No problem"

While Sherry's pregnancy was an unexpected one, Michonne couldn't help but wonder about what kind of father Negan would be. She soon realised that if he does get to play a role in the child's life, the poor thing would grow up to have the mouth of a sailor. She almost chuckled to herself at the joke.

She hoped news of Sherry's pregnancy didn't disrupt his new role. While she understood it would be quite the bombshell, the last thing the Sanctuary needed was a heartbroken leader making emotionally charged decisions.

The next day she spent her morning loading up her jeep to leave, as well as informing those who asked where she was going. Most people seemed quite relieved with the idea, while others questioned Dwight's capability. She spent a lot of time reassuring the worried.

Once her own bags were loaded, she made her way to Negan's room to collect clothes for him. She hoped Rick didn't expect him to live in the same clothes day after day, though she wouldn't be surprised if he didn't care.

Negan's room always slightly horrified her, as the man's taste was the polar opposite of hers. She thought it looked like something out of a vampire's lair, with black and red tones. He had insisted it was for his women, but she refused to believe such a thing. She moved around the room grabbing his shirts and pants, and gingerly emptying his pants and socks into a duffle bag. She was in the middle of fighting the zipper closed when she saw a polaroid on the his night stand. She picked it up and smiled, shoving it in her back pocket, sure to give it to him.

"Ready to go?", Dwight asked as he waited beside her Jeep.

"Yeah. All packed", She groaned as she threw the duffel bag in the back seat, "You can clear out his room? Maybe give it to someone else? I already took everything out that he needs"

"Alright", The man nodded, opening the car door for her.

"You know where to find me", She reminded as she jumped in the driver's seat, "And don't doubt yourself. You've got this"

"Thanks. Tell Rick I said-"

She scowled at him.

Dwight chortled, "Never mind"

She hoped he would take her advice seriously, and a part of her felt bad for about the news he would soon learn, but she had faith in him.

The sun was high in the sky as she drove, and she allowed herself to get lost in the music, enjoying the peaceful ride. She played with the pendant on her necklace as she drove, her thoughts traveling to her son. It wasn't something she allowed herself to do often, as it was a wound that hadn't healed, and one she wouldn't allow to heal. The topic was a delicate one, one that she hardly even talked about with Negan, but it warmed her heart that he would think of him. It was that side of the man, that she truly cherished.

When she arrived at Alexandria, a young woman opened the gates for her, allowing her to drive in. She pulled up and got out, just as an Asian man walked up to her with a warm smile.

"Michonne? I'm Glenn", He held his hand out to her.

She shook it, "Hey"

"We have quite a few homes available, so I can show you a few, you can pick which one you want?"

Her eyes sailed past him, as she shrugged, "Yeah, sure"

"Great. You can leave your bags here for now, we'll come back and get them when you've decided"

She nodded, "Well, let's go house hunting".


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12:

"Say Daddy? Da-dee?"

"Da!"

Rick smiled at his daughter as he hugged her, "Close enough, Judy"

"Give her time, she'll nail it", Carol encouraged as she joined him on his front porch. The day was another sunny one, without a cloud in sight, and the sky was almost glowing.

Rick watched the grey haired woman, "How are you?"

She glanced up from Judith, "Good. Tired, but good"

He nodded, "Good to hear"

"I heard you have a new resident?"

"Yeah…", Rick's eyes found the street in front of his home, "Michonne"

Carol sat back in her seat, her eyes darting around in a way that annoyed Rick, "You trust her?"

An eyebrow shot up on his face, "Yeah. Why?"

The woman shrugged, "I have to play devil's advocate… that balancing on the fencing thing never works out"

He eyed the side of the her face before turning back to the street, deciding he was officially done with the topic, "You staying a while?"

"I will… I missed it here, believe it or not"

"We missed having you…"

She exhaled as she took Judith from his arms, "Don't you ever get tired of all this?"

"What?"

"This world? This life? Having to kill just to survive… it's just, it's just draining"

Rick remained quiet, giving her room to continue if she wished.

"I miss just having to worry about making it to work on time… not, 'Is this guy going to kill me? Or someone I love?'...", She shook her head, "We may be safe from the Savior's now but… it's as if the longer we survive, the worst people get… and I'm sick of it"

He slowly nodded, understanding her point, "If you want the ones we love to make it… then we have to keep going… it's not easy, it takes its toll, but we're working towards somethan' here"

She didn't say anything else, but he knew Carol enough to know that she was mulling over his words, and if she did disagree with his point, she would have swiftly made him aware of that.

Rick spent the rest of the morning in his home, enjoying the opportunity to do such a thing. He played with his daughter and bathed her, letting his son get up to his own devices. He forgot about everything and everyone outside his home and acted as if the world was right again.

By mid-day however, he was reminded that he was a leader.

"We wanna go check out that mall again, get some more materials. I don't like how those panels are starting to curve in", Abraham explained, pointing at the section of the wall in question.

Rick's eyes searched the metal, looking for any other similar panels that matched his friends concern, "Those too"

"Yeah", Abraham nodded as he followed Rick's line of sight.

"Alright. Set that up, do what you have to do", Rick gave him a single nod as he began to back up, "If you are anythan' else out there that could help-"

"Bring it back. Got it".

He turned and began walking down the street, immediately noticing Daryl making his way towards him with Tara in tow.

"What's going on?", He asked, his eyes scanning over them.

"Heading out, gonna go check out some centre that they saw a while back", Daryl informed, adjusting his backpack.

"We wanted to go in but there were Savior's driving around the area so we left it. We figured we could check it out now", Tara shelled her eyes from the sun as she spoke.

"Sounds good, how far?"

"Twenty miles out. Shouldn't take long".

"Alright. You know the drill, be careful… and uh, if you stumble across anythan'... for kids-"

Daryl seemed to understand his request, "I'll bring back somethan' for lil ass kicker"

"I appreciate it"

Rick gave Tara a nod and Daryl a pat on the back before they went their separate ways. It always made him so uncomfortable to have his people leave, even though they were well equipped to survive alone, and the threat of the Savior's was no more.

He headed to the front gate, where Sasha stood watch, and Rosita leaned on the gate. He climbed up the ladder and squinted into the distance as her joined the woman.

"Quiet?"

She nodded, "Nothing. A few walkers but otherwise, we're good… we need a chair up here or something though"

He smirked, "I think we do"

"What's up with Jessie?", She turned to him, an annoyed expression growing on her face, "She's been volunteering for any and everything lately?"

Rick groaned, shaking his head, "She's trying to prove herself, I guess?"

Sasha's face pinched, "Well, just don't put her on watch with me"

He bit back a chuckle, "Might make it more interesting up here?"

Sasha sent him an unimpressed look.

He couldn't help but sniggered, knowing his friends was never fond of the woman, "Guess not"

"It's great that she's interested in helping out now but she's just been getting in the way. You know she wanted to come with us to the Sanctuary?"

Rick raised his eyebrows at Sasha.

"Yeah. As if she forgot she nearly took my arm off with the machete when Rosita was training them"

He cringed at the memory, "I think we all remember that"

"Rick?"

They both turned and looked over the wooden rail, where Michonne was holding a duffel bag, looking up at them. Rick hadn't seen her since her arrival, and hadn't idea what she was doing with the bag, but he still proceeded to climb down the ladder to greet her.

"What's going on?"

"I wanted to take some clothes for Negan… has he been allowed to shower?", She asked, tilting her head at him.

Rick was almost embarrassed to admit that he hadn't cared to let the man do anything, besides eat, "Not that I'm aware"

Her face fell, as did her shoulders, "He's been in there for almost two weeks-"

"How do you propose we do this then?", He offered quickly, hoping to stop her from possibly scolding him and reaching a quick resolution.

"Let him in the house?"

His expression seemed to tell her what he thought of that idea.

"Take the door off. Have two people armed and with him the whole time. And me"

He thought long and hard about the idea, his eyes trailing the scenery behind her, "Fine"

"And he needs his bandage changed."

"Alright, you do all that, but make sure that there are others with you"

"Deal. Key?", She held her hand out to him.

He withheld a sigh as he reached in his pocket, pulling the key off its ring, and dropped it in her hand.

She spun on her heel, marching away, "I'll give it back as soon as he's done"

Rick watched her for a few moments, then tore his eyes away from her back. He looked back up to where Sasha was, and the woman was leaning on the rail, her raised an eyebrow at him, leading him to frown at her. She smirked, turning back to the wall, leaving him dumbfounded.

While he trusted Michonne to handle Negan, he still made sure to stay close to the area while they dealt with him. He figured the only way the two of them would get along was if he left her to be in charge of her friend, and while he struggled when it came relinquishing power so easily, it would be for the greater good of his sanity.

"Hey Rick"

He looked away from the grass area, where Eugene was looking over the solar panels, with Noah on hand, and he saw Jessie stepping towards him, "Hey"

"What's going on?", She asked, her eyes darting to the two other residents who stood in the street a few meters apart, with rifles in hand.

"Just keeping an eye on thangs", He responded vaguely, his weapon hanging loosely in his hand.

She looked back at him, "Oh… okay… well, I was actually wondering if I could talk you about starting up a school again?"

Rick blinked at her.

"I think it would be a good idea, somewhere for the kids to go in the day?"

"And who would be running that?", He didn't mean to sound so sceptical, but he was curious.

"Father Gabriel? Penny? I wouldn't mind helping from time to time?"

"Yeah…", He glanced down the street towards the home where Negan was housed, not completely sold on Jessie's idea, "Can I get back to you on that?"

"Oh, yeah. Sure. That's fine", She nodded, her ponytail bouncing. She shifted her stance, her hands on her hip, "Well I'm going to make a stew for dinner so… I'll drop some over with Carl when I'm done"

"You don't have to do that-"

"No, honestly. I don't mind at all. I have a lot of free time… so yeah"

He felt a pang of guilt for the woman, having lost both her sons. He wasn't afraid to admit that he often forgot, and while he still had absolutely no trust in her, he didn't wish to be completely cold, "Alright, thanks"

"No problem", She smiled warmly, then continued on with her walk.

He glanced back down the street, just as Michonne appeared at the top of the stairs, leading to the basement. Rick leaned back, tucking his python away before he stood, making his presence known. She began to stroll in his direction, adjusting the bag on her shoulder.

"How'd it go?", He probed when she was close enough, descending the steps he had sat on.

She held out the key to him, "No problems at all"

He took from her, "Good".

"Was that necessary?", She used her thumb to point behind her, at the two residents who were now leaving their assigned spots.

Rick shrugged, "You can never be too careful-"

"I was there".

"And that's great", the phrase left his mouth in an unintentionally mocking tone, and he soon amended it, "It just precaution. That's all".

She pursed her lips in annoyance, looking over at the solar panels, while his eyes fell to the gold necklace she wore.

He wondered whose name the pendant stood for, but he knew better than to ask, "Which house did you pick?"

Her gaze was back on him, "One of the two bedrooms?"

He nodded, feeling silly for thinking otherwise, "Did they set you up with everythan'?"

"They did"

Rick couldn't understand what was happening, but he found himself going through a rolodex in his mind, trying to think of things to say to her before they went their separate ways. It was a strange, virtually out of character moment for him, but it was as if he couldn't help himself.

"There was something I noticed, I wasn't sure if you were aware…"

"Yeah? What?", He tilted his head at her.

"The trees by the wall by my… new home. They look like they'd be easy to climb… and you haven't got a watch point close enough to see. Someone could easily get in here if they wanted to"

He stared at her for a moment, registering the concern, "Show me"

She nodded, leading the way to her new home. He was impressed with her initiative, as it wasn't something that had been brought to his attention before. He imagined it wouldn't be the last time that she pointed out possible weak spots either, and if it made their home safer, he was willing to listen.

They arrived at her house after walking in silence, and Rick was confused, to see the least, as she went up the front porch and into the home. He assumed it would be an issue they would be able to see from outside the property, but he still quietly followed her, as he was sure she remembered that he was there. She dropped the duffle bag to the floor, and started climbing the stairs, and Rick, once again hesitated, before continuing behind her. She opened the second door on the landing and strolled in, walking to the window that was adjacent to the door. He hovered outside the door for a few seconds, hesitating a second time, before forcing himself in the room.

It was quite obviously her bedroom they were in, and Rick was uncomfortable to say the least, despite the fact that the room was barely lived in. Her bags were still in a pile by the bed and her dressing table and dresser top were bare, but that didn't stop Rick from feeling as if he was intruding.

"You see?", She crossed her arms as she looked out the window.

Rick squinted, his eyes darting in every direction as he considered the possibility, "It would be quite a drop though"

"Not enough to do serious damage. And even still, all they need a rope ladder or something and… they're in"

He scratched his brow with his thumb, slowly nodding, "Alright. We'll sort that out"

She stepped away from the window first, and he was right behind her, "If you have any tools around, I can work on getting that door off the bathroom about his cell"

"I already told Scott about it, he'll handle it", He explained as they trudged down the stairs.

She rested her hands on her hips when they reached the bottom floor, looking around the house aimlessly, "Alright"

Rick was flicking through his mental rolodex, and once again, he struggled to understand why, but he picked the most pathetic excuse to speak again, "Did Glenn explain how the pantry works?"

Her gaze took a moment to find him, "I don't think so?"

"Well you have to write down what you take, but somethings we have to ration out so you're only allowed a certain amount until we restock it…If you go down there then Olivia will let you know… what that is..."

"Okay…"

The conversation was barely salvageable, and Rick should have taken that as his cue to leave, but her eyes hadn't left him, and his didn't leave hers, so they stood in the foyer of her home, gazing at each other.

She sulked air between her teeth as she resurfaced first, "I have books. Comic books. I saw your son earlier, he had one-"

"My son", Rick choked out, clearing his throat, "Yeah, he's into stuff like that. And another girl here-"

"Well, you can send him- them around and they can go through them-"

"I'll do that. I'll tell him-"

"Okay"

He nodded, heading to the door with a quickened pace, skipping down the porch steps and power walking down the street. It was if his feet couldn't carry him fast enough; he felt embarrassed for hanging around her like a lost puppy, almost bursting a vein trying to think of something to say. He was confused and annoyed with himself, struggling to understand his behaviour since the woman had barged her way into his life.

"Hey dad?"

Carl's voice pulled him from his thoughts, and he slowed in the street when he saw him, "Hey, what's wrong? What happened?"

Carl began to frown at him, "Nothing? Judith's with Carol… I was going over to see what Noah was doing with Eugene?"

Rick nodded, his eyes darting from his son to everything else, "Alright, that's fine…"

"Did something happen?"

"What? No, no nothing, I'm just... tired, I guess"

Carl's eyes narrowed at his father, hardly buying his excuse, "Dad?"

He focused on his son, shifting his stance and placing both hands on his waist, "You're still into comic books right?"

Carl scoffed, "That's the only thing I can be into"

He gave a pitiful chuckle, "Yeah well, you know Michonne? She said she had some if you're interested. You and Enid"

Carl's eyes lit up, "Really? That's cool"

"Yeah… she said you can go over there, but don't go kicking her door in yet, she just got here. We'll give her some space for now"

The teen nodded, looking down the street for a moment, then back at his father, "Do you think this whole… Negan being locked up thing is working?"

He sighed, rolling his shoulders, "As long as he behaves himself, I think it will"

"...I thought you would have killed him by now"

Rick smirked, "To be honest with you son, the temptation was there but, who knows, I've seen a lot of men like him change after being retrained for a long time"

Carl frowned beneath his hair, "Do you think he'll change?"

He thought about it, peering past his son, "I don't know, we'll just have to wait and see".

Truth be told, he doubted it. Rick could probably guess the kind of man Negan was in his past life. He was as charismatic as he was brutish, but all in all, he thought the man was a psychopath.

The next day he decided to take Sasha's shift at the watch point. It wasn't a job he usually took, as his name was first on everyone's tongue, so he'd spent a lot of time working around the community, but he needed a task that could allow him to deliberate, as he felt his mind was growing cloudy. He slowly paced, his eyes surveying the area beyond the walls, though he hardly focused on anything in particular.

It was when he was well and truly lost in his thoughts that he heard the roar of a car engine approaching, which quickly snapped him back to reality. His brow furrowed as he recognised the vehicle, and the person driving, almost recklessly.

"Who is it?", Bruce called up to him from the gate.

"It's Dwight, open up", Rick instructed, making his way towards the ladder.

Bruce pulled open the gate, allowing the Savior's new leader in. Rick immediately sensed there was a problem, and he swung his rifle to his back and retrieved his python, mainly just for show, but a small part of him knew that wasn't always the case.

Dwight brought the car to a screeching halt and climbed out, slamming the door behind him. He held Negan's bat in one hand and a small pistol in the other, wearing a crazed expression, "Where is he?! Where the fuck is Negan?!"


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13:

When Glenn turned up at Michonne's door, slightly panicked and telling her to follow him, she naturally grabbed her katana and flew out her home with him, no questions asked. He had informed her as they ran that Dwight had turned up, and he and Rick were engaged in a Mexican standoff, as Dwight was demanding to see Negan. Glenn of course, had no clue why, while Michonne knew from the moment he mentioned her friend's name.

Both men held their pistols aimed at each other, standing only feet apart. Dwight was obviously fuelled by emotion, as his hand shook slightly, and his eyes bounced all over Rick, who was chillingly calm, barely blinking, and his finger sat comfortably on the trigger.

"You're protecting him too now, huh?!", Dwight smiled with disbelief, in a crazed fashion, "This is fucking ridiculous!"

"I'm not protecting him", Rick sniffed, tilting his head a fraction, "Believe it or not, I'm actually protecting you. Now I don't know what he did for you to come storming in here wanting blood but if you calm down, we can talk about it? There's no point in you shooting me and then me killing you, all because of that asshole"

Dwight shook his head as he frowned, "He's fucked me over enough, and now this…"

"Dwight?"

Both of them turned to Michonne, who kept her sword by her side, as not to alert him anymore. She inched towards him, "I know, what's happened, and I understand-"

"You knew?", Dwight spun the hand that held his gun towards Michonne, "You knew?!"

"Hey!", Rick roared, stepping closed to Dwight with his python raised, now aiming for his head, "Calm down!"

"She came and she told me", Michonne explained, her weapon still at her side, "I told her to tell you. I told her you would understand-"

"What is there to understand?!", Dwight spat at her.

"That she did what she did to protect the both of you! She was trying to make things easier for you and she did! What happened between them was just the bad part of the deal she made!"

Dwight's face began to soften, "I don't want him near-"

"He can't go anywhere Dwight. He quite literally can't. So move your gun from my face because I'm starting to get a little offended", She raised her eyebrows at him.

The man huffed as he dropped the weapon to the floor, and through the bat away from himself. He paced around in a circle, shaking his head, "I'm sorry Michonne. I am-"

"It's okay. Not the first time someone's pointed a gun at me", She didn't mean to glance at Rick when she made the comment, but his reaction to her sly dig was amusing.

"Sorry Rick", Dwight exhaled, brushing his hair back from his face with his hands.

"Yeah, don't worry about it", Rick glanced over his shoulder, "Glenn can you take Dwight over to the Monroe's… let him… calm for a while"

"Sure", Glenn nodded, lifting his hand to Dwight.

The other leader followed Glenn, still looking incredibly bothered, but Michonne was glad he was no longer armed with anything.

"I'll be right over", Michonne called as she picked up Negan's bat from the floor, "I should probably keep this"

Rick furrowed his brow as he looked at her and she figured he was waiting for her to explain what that was about. Her mouth opened and closed a few times as she hesitated.

"Never mind. I honestly don't even care, as long as he doesn't go waving a gun around at anyone again", Rick rested his hands on his sides, looking back in the direction that the two men had gone.

She bit her lip as she felt oddly comfortable, and compelled to tell him, but she knew it wasn't her position to do such a thing, "I'm going to go check on him… are you going to be here for a while? I'll probably have to go see Negan after..."

His eyes slid back to her, "I'll probably be around, even if I'm not, it won't be hard to find me"

She slowly nodded, "Alright"

Ever since their last interaction, the previous afternoon, Michonne had been avoiding Rick, and she was sure he was avoiding her too. When he left her home she had felt like a fool for spewing some nonsense about comic books. She didn't even need to tell him to pass on the message to his son as she knew where to find the teen. She was feeling too much compulsion to keep him in her company for a little while longer whenever he was around, and it scared her, quite frankly. So hiding from him had become the go to option for her, and it had worked, up until Dwight came bursting in the community.

She found her friend in the Monroe's home, still reeling about the news of his wife's pregnancy, and Glenn was polite enough to give them some privacy when she arrived.

"What do I do? How can I even… this is my wife, Michonne-"

"I know", She slid him a cup of coffee and sat on the other side of the dining table, "It's a lot to deal with. It's a big thing to accept"

"I don't want to have to look at this child and… and just see him! Him of all people!", Dwight threw his hands up in the air.

"I know this won't be easy right now, but I want you to look at the bigger picture here. It's a baby. A baby that won't know care about anything other than its parents… and if you stay with Sherry, then that's going to be you. Yes, biologically, the child's Negan's but he won't be there to raise it… he won't spend anywhere near as much time as you will, so you'd be what he or she knows as a father… and I think in a time like this… it's such a privilege to have someone that will love you unconditionally, and to have someone you can love unconditionally too"

Dwight looked subdued as he shoulders fell, "It is"

"Sherry loves you. All she was worried about was telling you. Negan wasn't even a factor-"

"Does he know?"

She shook her head, "No. Not at all"

"You're going to tell him, aren't you?"

She huffed, sitting back in her seat, "Who else would take on such a deed?"

He shook his head in annoyance, "He doesn't deserve this. I know he's your friend and I'm sorry, but he just… he's ruined too many lives to deserve this"

She crossed her arms over her chest as she allowed him to vent.

He exhaled tiredly, "Thanks for talking to Sherry about this… I don't think she could have talked to the others"

"Don't mention it… you want to stay the night? Go back with a clear head in the morning?"

"You live here?"

She shook her head, "No. Over by the edge of town"

He nodded, "Yeah, sure. Thanks"

The two of them sat having a considerably more relaxed conversation, before she left him in the home to find Rick. She would rather deal with Negan sooner, as opposed to later, and she had planned on going to see him to drop off the polaroid she had for him. She was killing two birds with one, very large bombshell.

She arrived at the gate to find it open, and a few members pulling corpses away from the community. Rick appeared, and to her dismay, the man had taken his jacket off and wore a t-shirt that fit him a little too snug. She forced her eyes to stay above his chin as she approached him.

"What happened?"

"Just a small group of them", He shrugged, noticing her eyes darting all over his face, "I fell back, one dropped on top of me and, I got covered in… well, _guts_ "

He smelt diabolical, and yet, she wasn't as repulsed as she should have been.

He reached in his pocket and took the cell key off its ring, "Might be easier if I just give that to you from now on"

She raised an eyebrow at him as she took it from him.

"Well you've stuck to your word on most thangs… I can't really think of a reason not to give it to you?", His head tilted and squinted at her.

She was very taken back by his suggestion, and it took her a short moment to reply, "Well I think it makes sense. I am here to keep an eye on him… and I don't think anyone else really wants that job"

He pursed his lips.

She rolled her eyes, "Well, I _know_ no one else wants that job".

"Yeah. That's just you", He smirked, and Michonne's eyes nearly fell to his chest as he flinched.

She gave a small, playful smile, then span on her heel and walked away. She was glad he was entrusting her with the key so soon, especially as she thought he'd guard it with his life for many more months before such a thing happened, and because she could continue to avoid him with ease.

She wasn't a naive woman. She had figured that it was some sort of attraction she felt towards him when she found herself growing uncomfortable whenever he was close to her. It was discomfort from having to hold back on the urge to touch him, to inhale his scent deep within her airways, or to feel his breath tickling her lips. However, it was all too much for her to handle, and the last thing she needed was to lose herself at a time like this, in inappropriate thoughts.

Burying her feelings was her only option.

Negan was doing push ups, with his limb behind his back when she walked into the cell. She was incredibly impressed with how well he was adjusting to his new form, but she wasn't at all surprised, as the man was well built to begin with.

"Here", She held out the polaroid to him, watching as he moved to kneel.

He was barely panting, or sweating, and took the photo from her. A large smile spread across his face, "I was wondering if you saw it"

"I did", She leaned against the wall and slid down into a crouched position, "Only picture of us. Ever"

He stood up and walked over to his mattress, dropping himself down on it, "What's wrong with you? You're doing that Debbie downer thing?"

She dropped her head back against the wall as she looked at him, "Sherry's pregnant"

He stared at her, "Sherry? My wife- _ex_ -wife is pregnant?"

"She is".

His face went through a large range of emotions before he settled on anger, "Where is she?"

"Back at the Sanctuary"

"Why the fuck isn't she here telling me this?"

"Because she's _scared_ of you, Negan", She was sure to put a little enthuses on the word 'scared'.

"I want to see her. You have to bring her to me 'Chonne"

"I will ask her to come, but I can't force her too-"

"Are you trying to fuck me? Are you _really_ trying to fuck me in the ass right now, 'Chonne?", He squinted at her, "I want to see her!"

"And you will! When she's ready to come by! I am not going to drag her here kicking and screaming, I am going to ask her to come when she's ready and that's it", She hated that she had to raise her voice at him, but the man was loud.

His eyes roamed all over her face, "Do you see what I'm in right now? A cage! A shitty little cage that some fuckwit farmer built and you're telling me that I'm going to be a father? How? How the fuck can I do that from here?!"

"These are things you and Sherry have to come to agreement on. I can't make these decisions for either of you-"

"You helped him put me in here!"

"Because you're awful when you're free! You're a bully and a thief and just an all-round horrible leader!"

He blinked at her, "You're still going on about all that shit?"

She balled her fists as she tried not to yell at him any further.

"We need to figure something out here. If I'm going to be a father then I want out this fucking shit hole-"

"Negan. That can't happen and you know it can't-"

"You need to make it happen! If this was vies versa- Oh wait, this wouldn't be the case because I wouldn't cut your arm off and put you in fucking jail! And I definitely wouldn't be co-conspirator to that son of a bitch southern Belle that's running around up there!"

She stared at the wall in front of her, breathing in through her nose and out through her mouth as she tried to pull the conversation away from a screaming match.

He dragged his hand over his face and looked to the ceiling for a few moments, "I want you to raise it".

Her eyebrows shot up into her forehead as she looked at him, "Excuse me?"

"I want you to raise the baby. You've done this, and I don't trust anyone else-"

"You don't get to decide who can raise your child Negan! Well, I mean, you're meant to but you chose Sherry when you had unprotected sex with her! So you can't decide to take her baby from her and give it to someone else-"

"Who the fuck even is Sherry?! The only thing I know about her is that she had a great vagina! So great, Dwight couldn't even leave it alone! That's it! And now she's having my baby? My child?"

Michonne was watching him with a disgusted expression, "I cannot believe you"

"It's the truth. I won't apologise for the truth", He looked at her with serious eyes, "The fact of the matter is, if she confirms to me that this is my child, then I want it safe. And until I get out of here, the safest person it'll be with is you. Sherry may be a nice girl and blah shit blah, but I knew all my wives' well enough to see that they were pretty useless with anything that didn't involve a cock, so to have a baby? In a time like this? There's only one person I know that's strong enough to handle that. And it's you"

She shook her head as she looked up at the window, "I couldn't even protect my own child, so I don't know-"

"No! Mike couldn't protect your son, that piece of shit wanted to bury his pinhead in the sand when the world was going to the fucking hell hounds and it's his fault that Andre didn't make it. Not. You. So don't ever fucking blame yourself for his mistakes"

It was Negan's tone that drew her to look at him. His eyes were still stern, his hands arms rested on his bent knees, mimicking her own position. She sighed, shaking her head, "You can't ask me to take another woman's child from her, and I hate that you would even think like that"

His lips pursed, his tongue rolling around his mouth, his eyes scanning her face as he thought, "I want to see her"

"I will talk to her then", She rolled her head back to face the window.

He stood up rolling his shoulders back, "I'm going to be a fucking dad. Who would have thought, huh?"

Her eyes crept over to him as he went back to kneeling.

"How'd you feel about it all?"

Her eyes sailed to the wall behind him, "Not the best circumstances but, I'm happy for you, and Sherry".

" _You_ probably know her better than I do", He scoffed, leaning on his hand, "Come on. Get on my back while I do this set"

Her conversation with Negan left her feeling uneasy, and she didn't think such a milestone in his life would have any impact her, but it did. It dawned on her that he would want her around for such a time, and while she was adamant that she wouldn't raise the child, she would be expected to be around the baby girl or boy, and that scared her the most.

She had only seen one very young child since her son, and that was Rick's daughter. She had no bond to that child at all and yet, she was ready to run for the hills when she first laid eyes on the toddler, so she couldn't imagine how she'd feel with Negan's child. It was a hurdle she didn't think she'd be able to tackle anytime soon, but she hoped it wouldn't always be the case, as she did adore children, and being a mother was something that brought her remarkable happiness.

After leaving him to continue his work out, she emerged on the street and her eyes fell on Carl, who was coincidently, walking right towards her.

"Hey", He smiled, wearing a brown sheriff's hat, "Hope you aren't busy or anything… my dad told me about the-"

"Comics. And no, I'm not busy at all so you can come over now if you want? I just need to get Dwight from the Monroe's… and we can all head over to my place"

He beamed, "Yeah, sure"

They both slowly began to walk up the street, "Alright, so first things first, Marvel or DC?"

Carl squinted into the distance, "It's gonna have to be DC for me-"

Michonne let out a dramatic gasp, "How _dare_ you?"

The teen chuckled, "What? I mean Marvel is okay and all but..."

"You're so lucky I haven't got anything to do for a while, so we can have this argument for the rest of the evening"

The teen rose to the challenge, holding his head up high, "Fine, let's do it"

"Oh. We will".


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14:**

Rick stood out on the front of his porch feeling slightly sick. His eyes darted back and forth up the street as he waited for his son to arrive home for the day, which was strange in itself, as he was usually home before he was. He had a feeling that he was at Michonne's home, as his son had been spending a lot of time there in the last few days, but he didn't like the idea of marching up to her front door and demanding for his son. To top it off, He and Carl were slowly mending their relationship, so he didn't want to seem like the big bad Wolf, coming to break up their party.

But it was getting late.

"What's going on?", Daryl asked as he trudged up the steps towards him.

Rick shook his head, "Nothing. Just waiting on Carl"

"Where is he?", Daryl stopped to squint at him.

"I think he's at a friend's house", He didn't know why he was so vague, but he didn't know why he behaved the way he did when Michonne was mentioned entirely.

"Go get him then", His friend looked at him as if he were crazy as he continued on into the house.

Rick glanced back over his shoulder, "Alright, Judith's asleep-"

"Got it!"

He hadn't even seen Michonne as frequently since he gave her the key to Negan's cell. It was something he suspected would happen, but he had also learned from the guards that she hadn't been to see Negan either. He was confused to say the least, though he figured it was something to do with Dwight's last visit.

The walk to her home wasn't a long one, but it felt even shorter as he tried to mentally prepare himself to intrude on their night. As soon as he stood outside her front door he heard laughing, and his hand froze before he could knock. His son's laugh a heartily one, and he could picture him holding his stomach as he threw his head back. He imagined the other was Michonne's, and he hadn't even seen the woman smile, so he couldn't even begin to visualise her laughing.

He knocked on the door and the chuckles died down. He stepped back and took a deep, composing breath as he listened to the footsteps approach. The door swing open, and Michonne straightened up at the sight of him.

"I have your kid", She announced.

"You do", He nodded, attempting to come across relaxed about the situation.

"Hey Batman- I mean Carl!", She called back into the house.

"Yeah?!", His son replied.

"Your dad's here!"

Rick shifted his stance as he witnessed the exchange. He almost wished he stayed home and waited for Michonne to kick his son out.

"Lost track of time…", She explained, resting on the door.

Carl appeared, immediately looking apologetic, "Sorry, I didn't realise it was late"

"Figured. Thank Michonne and go on home, get somethan' to eat", Rick issued, pointing behind him with his thumb.

"Thanks again, see you tomorrow", Carl smiled before stepping past his father.

"See ya", She chirped, straightening up again.

Rick turned his head to listen to his son walk away, before looking back at her, "He's not too much trouble is he?"

She gave a little shake of her head, "No. Not at all"

"Alright… Well thanks for letting him hang out here"

"No problem"

He scratched his brow as he struggled with his words, "How's it going with… Negan?"

Her eyes sailed behind him, "Fine."

He stared at her, "Good… well then uh-"

"I actually wanted to talk to you", She perked up, "I wanted to go out… beyond the walls, for a little while?"

He was back to staring at her again, "You wanted to go out? For a little while?"

"Yeah", She nodded.

He tried to approach his next question with some tact and some kind of sensitivity, but all he could choke out was, "Why?"

Her gaze dropped as she shifted her weight to the other foot, causing her hip to stick out and a slither of skin to appear under her top, "I like to go on drives"

He blinked, hoping she would volunteer to go into more detail.

"You know? Just a drive… drag race with a few walkers..."

He narrowed his eyes at her.

She bit her lip as she dropped her head, "That was meant to be a joke"

His mouth fell agape.

"Your son told me my sense of humour was, well, he said it was _horrible_ "

A little chuckle left Rick, "I wouldn't say it's horrible… just a little, uh… So you want to just drive around?"

"Yeah."

The idea wasn't one he agreed with and he could easily think of a list of reasons why. If anyone else had approached him with such a suggestion, he would have shot it down without even thinking about it, but he was genuinely trying his best to keep the peace between the two of them.

"I know you said that no one's allowed to leave unless it's absolutely necessary but, I do find stuff when I'm out, checking out new areas and it's easier when I'm alone. I get the job done quicker", She explained.

He exhaled slowly, "How about this, the next time there's a run, you go. Daryl's one of the best people to go out there, so if he's going then you go with him. We haven't got the gas to spare for two separate trips at a time, when both of you can just go together. He barely talks too, so if it's quiet you're after… you'll get it"

She seemed to mull over the alternative option, her lips pursing for a moment, "Deal".

His eyes fell to her necklace, and he tore his eyes up from the pendant for a second time. He nodded in agreement, "Deal. Alright, well, we're gonna get started on that watch spot tomorrow so, it's gonna get a little busy around here"

"Okay, that's fine"

He backed up towards the steps before turning around, "Night".

"Night".

The next day started early for Rick, as Judith awoke and screamed bloody murder until she was taken out of her crib. He washed and fed her, and he was hoping to have some time to do the same for himself, but he wasn't so lucky.

Tyreese arrived at his front door, and the friendly, giant man was obviously agitated, "Negan's kicking up a stink over there. Demanding to get out and threatening Eugene-"

"Where's Michonne?", Rick frowned.

"I saw her on my way over here, I told her what happened and she just said okay"

Rick groaned as he rolled his shoulders, "Carl! I'm heading out!"

"Alright!", Carl called back to him from upstairs.

He grabbed his gun belt from the living room, and marched out his home with Tyreese. He knew that the day would come that Negan would become destructive again, but he had secretly hoped that it wouldn't be any time soon.

"Where's Eugene?"

Tyreese glanced at him, "Abraham came in and took over for him while we figured out what to do. He probably went home"

Rick huffed as he stomped downstairs to the basement, and the first thing he saw was Abraham stood outside the front door, smoking a cigar.

He gave his friend a single nod before stepping inside the home and stalking to the cell door, "What's the problem here?"

"Fuck off cowboy. Nobody asked for you", Negan smirked as he paced his cell.

"Well I'm the only one that's here", Rick offered with a little shrug.

The man snarled at him, "Where is she?"

"She'll come down here when she's ready. Until late then you just sit tight and shut up, Unless you want that piss bucket to turn into a piss cup"

The two men glared at each other through the bars until Negan began to smile, "You're some piece of work. It's actually quite funny really, like watching a smaller, weaker version of myself"

Rick scowled at him, "The only thang that you and I have in common is that we both breath air"

"Oh please! You're a cold blooded killer just like me-"

"Who were you protecting when you killed?"

"My people!-"

"You were protecting your people from Aaron? From that kid at the Hilltop? From Spencer?-"

"See, that was different. That was when I was taking shit it into my own hands, and don't worry, the time will come where you're gonna a have to do the same, when you have to be the person that people don't want to fuck with"

"Is that so? And before all that?"

"What? You think you're the only one that's killed people to protect your own right? You think I haven't done that before? You think from the moment this shit kicked off I just picked up a bat and started knocking people's blocks off? No. I did things your way. I didn't mess with people until I knew they were a threat to mine", Negan threw his hands in the air, "But guess what? It's doesn't always fucking work! Sometimes you have to show people that you're there before they even see you. That's how you save lives. That's how you protect your own. People don't have to poke a fucking bear to find out that it's dangerous, they know it before they even see one. And when they do see one, there shitting their pants, kind of like how all of you fuckwits were when you saw just exactly what you were up against"

Rick stared at the man for a few moments after his speech, "Well, look how well that worked out for you? You're in here and your people are glad. They're happy with their new leader-"

"Until shit hits the fan! That's when they'll want me! That's when they want a leader that knows what the fuck he's doing!-"

"And they will have one. Just not you"

The front door opened and Michonne appeared in with clothes over her arm, pausing for a second when she saw Rick. He stepped out of sight to Negan and planted himself directly in front of her.

"He's been a problem", He voice was almost a whisper.

"What's new?", She muttered to herself as she looked towards the cell door, "Alright. I got it from here"

"We need to figure somethan' out here because I think he thinks this is some kind of gimmick. He needs to realise that this is what the rest of his life is gonna look like if he continues the way he does"

Her eyes slid up to his, "It's still early days. It will dawn on him"

"I hope so"

His cue to leave presented itself a second after he spoke, but it seemed he had other things to focus on, such as the faint smell of coconut and vanilla that radiated off her, and the way her brown eyes warmed in the light. Her dark skin seemed to be glowing, appearing soft and dewy, and the urge to touch her was a powerful one.

Once again, she was the one to break first, dropping her gaze as she stepped past him and Rick quickly left, feeling like an even bigger idiot than he previously had. He could only imagine what he looked like leering at her as if she was some kind of spectacle. He also realised he couldn't stand too close to her, as that was when he turned into an imbecile, losing the ability to think clearly.

His conversation with Negan didn't help matters. It worried him that he could see the man's point, though he still didn't agree with it. He was curious to know just how he survived before the Savior's, and he had a feeling that Negan would be more willing to talk about their past than Michonne.

"Get Scott over to cover for Abraham. We have to get started on that watch spot on the west wall", Rick instructed, "The Hilltop let us borrow some tools, we need guys out there to get those trees down while we start on the foundations"

"Got it", Tobin nodded.

"I'll go with them outside", Glenn volunteered, "I'll ask Tara and Noah to join us"

"Alright, let's get started"

Rick was looking forward to keeping himself busy. It was as if he had to look for something to do one day, and the next, he couldn't run out of things to do. The afternoon sun was high up in the sky, and it was a beautiful day, but he could have kicked himself for picking such a hot time to start work. Everyone around him complained, and it was too hot for him to complain about them complaining. He just powered on silently, trying to conserve his energy.

"Hey Rick"

He glanced over his shoulder as he held a piece of wood against the wall, "Hey, what's wrong?"

"Nothing", The blonde woman shook her head, "You need a hand?"

He glanced back at her again, just to see if she was serious.

"I know my way around a few tools… remember the owl statue?", Jessie joked, "I think I can at least pass them too you"

He straightened up, "You know what, you can actually pass me a few thangs right now if you don't mind?"

"Yeah, sure"

He was afraid that asking for his ex-girlfriend's help would lead to a discussion about their relationship, but the conversation was a pleasant one. She didn't stray too far away from the task at hand, and he was beginning to see that she was genuinely trying to pull her weight in the community. He almost felt bad for shunning her the way he did, though he still believed he had good reason to.

"So have you given any thought into the school idea?"

He rested his hands at his sides as he stood back to look at their progress, "Uh, I haven't really had a chance to but, it's not a bad idea or anythan'... There will be more kids around soon enough"

She nodded as she crossed her arms, squinting due to the sun, "I thought about that too. It would be good for them to have some kind of normality"

Rick raked his hands through his hair, "Yeah, I guess"

"I'd love to teach art again. I think it can be very therapeutic, not to mention fun for the kids… I'm sure Judith would love to finger paint or something?"

He glanced at her, "Yeah… she would"

"Need a hand?"

Both Rick and Jessie turned their heads to see Michonne approaching them, shielding her eyes from the sun.

"I think we're good over here", Jessie answered in a dismissive tone, causing Rick to look at her with a raised eyebrow.

"Over here, ninja lady", Abraham called, lifting a piece of wood on to his shoulder, "If you're offering?"

"I am", Michonne dropped her hand and went over to join him.

Rick watched her for a few seconds, before looking back at Jessie with a questioning look.

The blonde sighed, shaking her head, "I didn't mean to sound rude or anything, it's just… I think we should be careful of her. She was Negan's right hand woman and all…"

He knew some would be sceptical about Michonne, and even Negan living in the community, but he was growing tired of the topic, "Well now Negan doesn't _have_ a right hand. And that was because of her"

Jessie titled her head, her brows knitting together, "Yeah but-"

"How about we focus on getting this done?", He insisted, resting another piece of wood against the wall.

Jessie didn't move, as if she wanted to continue on with the discussion, but soon relented when she realised Rick didn't. They resumed the task, but the mood had turned sour, as neither of them spoke after that. He had caught her looking over at Michonne a few times, her eyes on the woman like a hawk, and it annoyed Rick more than anything else.

By the time they were complete with the perch, the afternoon was coming to an end. He was hot, tired and the combination made him irritable.

"Looking good", Glenn planted himself beside him as they looked over their work, "Glad we got it done"

"Yeah", Rick breathed, rubbing the back of his neck, "Now I need a shower"

"You're not the only one", Glenn smirked, turning to leave the area, "Oh, Uh… Maggie wants to go back to the Hilltop soon. Check on Jesus"

He eyed his friend as he began to walk with him, "Yeah? You staying up there a while?"

"Maybe. It's puts us at ease being so close to the Roberts… just in case"

He nodded, understanding their worries, "Yeah. I get it"

"Things are starting to look up… I'm hoping it stays this way"

"You and me both"

"Heard there was a little problem with Negan earlier?"

"Yeah", Rick snarled, "He was just having a tantrum"

"Think it's finally set it that he's gonna be a father?"

Rick's eyebrows rose, "What?"

Glenn's eyes widened, "Oh… I thought you knew… shit."

He narrowed his eyes as he peered down the street, slowly putting the pieces of the puzzle together, "Dwight wife?"

Glenn gave a quick nod.

"Well…", Rick didn't know what to say, but if he was going to be completely honest, he didn't particularly care, as Negan could only do so much from in his cell. He knew he would later wonder how that situation would play out, but for the moment, it was the least of his worries, "That's… an unfortunate set up".

"Dwight told me… I figured Michonne would have told you…"

Rick's face crumbled with confusion at his assumption.

"Uh… Any way, we were thinking about having a little dinner tomorrow night... you, Sasha, Abraham… and Michonne"

Rick glanced at him, "Yeah?"

"Yeah. So we could get to know her a little better… she's actually pretty funny"

He snickered, "I'm getting conflicting reports about that"

His friend frowned at him.

"Well, sounds good", Rick nodded, pulling his t-shirt off as he approached his porch, "Let me know what time and… all that"

"Will do!", Glenn called as he kept walking down the street, "And you can't back out last minute!"

"I won't!"


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15:

Michonne slowly paced her living room as her mind raced, still reeling over her last conversation with Negan. The man's request for her to raise Sherry's child bothered her to her core, and it was part of the reason that she had stopped seeing him regularly. She hoped that having him in a cell would help preserve their friendship somehow, but all it did was lead her to question it.

A knock at the front door snapped her from her thoughts, and she sighed as she went to answer it.

"Hey", Maggie greeted, a hand resting on her rounded stomach, "How are you?"

"Good", Michonne chirped back, "You?"

"Can't complain", She shrugged, "I was just stopping by to see if you were still on for tonight? And if you were, do you have any special dietary requirements I should know about?"

Michonne had honestly forgot that she agreed to attend their dinner party, "Oh, yeah. I can make it and, I'm a vegetarian so I guess I'd be fine with just a salad or something-"

"Oh, good. Meat isn't something we run across often… well Daryl will bring back squirrels sometimes…"

Michonne tried not to recoil at the thought, "Oh. Nice"

"Don't worry, it's just going to be pasta… hopefully a pie for dessert, but I'm still working on that"

"That's fine by me. Time?"

"Six?"

"No problem. I'll be there at six"

"Great! Alright then, see you then"

Michonne felt as if she was living in the twilight zone. She had become so accustomed to her new life that talking about attending a dinner party left her feeling strange.

It didn't help that she was desperate to leave the community. She knew Rick didn't agree with her reasoning, and she appreciated his offer to go with Daryl, but she wanted that time to herself, that time to escape from everyone else was precious to her.

She grabbed the key to Negan's cell off her mantel piece and stalked out of her home. While she was becoming friendly with a few of the other residents, there was only one person she could completely let her guard down with.

The socially awkward man that Michonne knew to be Eugene, was guarding her friend again. She sent him on his way when she arrived, and she could tell from the look on his face that he was grateful to be relieved.

Negan was doing sit ups when she walked into his cell, and he didn't stop his work out when he saw her take a seat on his mattress, "Two days in a row after three days of nothing? You're spoiling me 'Chonne"

She stretched her legs out in front of her, "Guess I am"

He glanced at her, "You got ants in your pants don't you? You wanna go out. Don't let me stop you"

"Trust me. You're not, but they have rules here"

He did one more sit up, before stopping completely, "You can't go out can you? That killer farmer won't allow it?"

"It makes sense. I don't disagree with it"

He chuckled as he stood up, "I would have never have taken you as the type to follow rules! I remember having to almost beg you to stay, and yet here we are… You're in here, dying to run away-"

"Nobody is running away.", She rebuffed, shaking her head, "So stop being a jerk-"

"What the hell has he done for you? For you to respect his rules?"

"He allowed me to live here with you. He didn't have to do that-"

"Yes he did. Otherwise I would have made his life hell from here"

She sighed, dropping her head back against the wall.

"When are you going to talk to Sherry?"

"When I go to the Sanctuary-"

"When's that?"

"When we're scheduled to trade. That's when", She bit at him, "And if she doesn't want to see you, then you have to respect that-"

"What do you mean 'If' she doesn't want to see me? She says that baby is mine so she has to-"

"No. She doesn't. Ideally it would be nice if she did but, sadly, you were an asshole to her so it won't be that simple"

He growled, stretching his arms over her head, "What's that piece of chicken shit Dwight got to say about it all?"

Michonne smirked, "He was going to beat you with your own bat"

Negan's face fell, "He has Lucille? Are you fucking kidding me 'Chonne?!"

"I have the bat, so calm down", She rolled her eyes at him.

"What the fuck was he doing with it, anyway? I would have loved to see him try to use it on me-"

"You got the man's wife pregnant. He would have put up one hell of a fight", She bit her lip as she tried to suppress a smile.

Negan stared at her, "So you're sitting there, secretly rooting for him?"

"Can you blame him? Can you honestly blame him?"

He rolled his eyes at her, "There you go again, trying to get me to sympathise with people that I don't give a shit about-"

"I'm not asking you for that. I know you well enough to not even bother with such a thing. You like the way you are-"

"And you don't. I got that memo when you cut off my fucking hand", He paced the cell, walking around in a circle, "So you came down here today because the killer… what did I call him before? A farmer right?... the killer cowboy won't let you out-"

"They don't like people leaving unless it's necessary. It makes sense, and I imagine they have less casualties, saves on gas-"

"Are you defending _him_?", Negan's lip curled at her, "You're fucking defending him aren't you?"

"I agree with the rule. There's a difference", She shrugged.

"But let's look at the facts here. He's not an idiot, he knows you can handle yourself-"

"That doesn't mean anything. I know he knows that, but it doesn't mean I should get preferential treatment-"

"I bet he has the hots for you. He let you move in, gave you the key to this piece of shit cell, he probably left you in charge of everything to do with me", Negan began to chortle, "All because he likes the way your hips swing when you walk"

She sent him her best glower, "Are you finished?"

"Someone needs to break it to him that _that_ ship isn't taking any passengers", He declared, ignoring her, "Fucking little prick"

She exhaled in an exasperated manner, preparing to change the subject, "I think Andre's birthdays coming up… I don't think it's past… I think we're in the middle of summer now so… it should be coming…"

He friend looked down at her, slowing his pace.

"I've been trying to think of a way that I would know… like if I could find one of those alarm clocks with the time and the date but… I figured the batteries probably died in them a long time ago…"

His eyes bounced off the walls as he thought, "Someone must know here. A creepy little town like this probably has someone like that… keeping track of time and dates to make them feel 'normal' in a fucking apocalypse"

She glanced at him, her fingers toying with the pendant on her necklace, "Maybe. I might ask…"

Negan sighed, stepping over to her with his hand extended. She took it, and he pulled her into a bear hug. It wasn't something they did often, but it was the only kind of physical contact that she had with anyone, and she accepted it.

"Thank you", she huffed against his chest.

"Yeah, don't mention it".

"...You stink"

"Fuck you 'Chonne"

She left his cell shortly after their hug, feeling a little more comfortable with herself. He was the closest thing she had to a home, and she knew she offered him the same feeling, though he wouldn't admit it, and neither would she.

With plans for the evening, she made a quick trip home to retrieve some clothes for Negan to have a shower. She returned to his cell and handed Tyreese the key, informing him of her whereabouts for when they were done. She knew Rick trusted the large man, and she could tell why, even though she had only a handful of conversations with him in passing.

She strolled back up the street, intending to go straight back to her house when she saw Carl, pushing his sister in a stroller towards her. Her body became rigid and her heart seemed to have migrated to her throat. She was sure to smile, though she imagined it wasn't the warmest.

"Hey!", Carl greeted, "You finished with..."

She nodded, her eyes glued on him, "Yeah, all done"

"Cool. This is my little sister Judith by the way. She's… I don't know how old she is. Maybe two?"

Michonne gave a dry chuckle as her eyes dropped to the girl. She gave a little wave to her, "Hey there… tiny person"

"I was trying to get her take a nap but no luck, so I thought a stroll might do it"

"Should do…", She answered weekly, "Maybe some warm milk?"

Carl frowned, "I know we got milk from the Hilltop before but we ran out at home and with the rations and everything-"

"I can ask? I haven't asked for milk so if they have some I can just give it to you?"

The teen's eyes lit up, "Really? Are you sure?"

"Yeah, I don't really eat dairy, but I think for this to work, we can't tell them that"

Carl chortled at her, "You're probably right. Thanks"

"Come on, let's go try this out"

Being in such close proximity to the toddler wasn't as daunting as Michonne expected it to be. While she wasn't completely ready to interact with the little girl, she didn't mind being in her company. Luckily for her, Carl didn't seem to pick up on her reserved behaviour towards his sister.

Once she was able to get a bottle of milk from the pantry for Carl, she walked the two of them home before setting off to her own house to get ready for Maggie and Glenn's dinner. She was proud of herself for keeping track of the time, but she didn't factor in how long it would take her to actually get ready.

After taking a quick shower, she scurried through her home in a hurried pace. Her clothing choices were limited, as everything was either black and leather or black and cotton. She didn't own a dress, so found herself recycling her black halter top with a pair of black leather pants, finished off with her biker boots. She left her hair down, hoping to keep her look somewhat casual, though she kept her hair band on her wrist just in case.

By the time she was done, she glanced at the clock in the living room and growled, "Shit!"

It dawned on her that she would be expected to talk with others at the dinner as she power walked down the street. She wouldn't classify herself as close enough to the people in attendance, and she could only hope they would do most of the talking for the evening.

She knocked gently on the door and took a step back as she waited for someone to appear. For reasons unbeknownst to her, she suddenly felt nervous, and found herself taking long, deep breaths to sooth herself.

"Hey!", Glenn greeted with a smile, moving aside to let her in, "Glad you can make it"

"Sorry I'm a little late, I underestimated how long it would take for me to get ready", She explained, stepping into the home.

"It's okay, foods almost done anyway so you're technically on time for that. Come on through"

Sasha, Abraham and Rick were all already sat around the dining table, laughing with each other. All eyes landed on her as she followed in behind Glenn, and she felt only a little nauseous.

"Hey! It's ninja lady!", Abraham teased as he held up his glass to her.

"Hey", She smiled, giving a pathetic attempt at a wave.

"Glenn! Can you help me please?!"

Glenn glanced towards his wife's voice in the kitchen, "So, take a seat, help yourself to whatever you'd like and I'll be back shortly"

"Okay, thanks", She breathed weekly.

Sasha and Abraham had sat together on one side of the six seater table, while Rick had sat on the opposite side of them. She quickly made the conscious decision to take the seat next to him, to avoid making the arrangement awkward.

"Have you met Sasha?", Rick asked, putting his glass down on the table.

"Not formally", She admitted, "But she was kind enough to escort me to the bathroom when you held me as a prisoner"

Abraham turned his head away from the table as he began to splutter, and Sasha pounded the man on his back with a flat hand, all while Rick stared at Michonne with a hung jaw.

"Nice to meet you, Sasha", She smiled.

"You too", Sasha smiled back, rubbing the man's back as he calmed.

Rick released a long suffering sigh, sitting back in his seat, "I'm sure I apologised for that"

"You did"

"And you said you didn't take it personally-"

"I don't"

He looked at her through narrowed eyes, as if he was trying to figure her out.

She raised her eyebrows at him innocently, crossing her legs beneath the table, "So, I wanted to know when you plan to trade with the Savior's…"

His brow furrowed, "We're trading with the Kingdom first. Why? You want to come along?"

"Well I needed to go to the Sanctuary anyway but… if you're going to the kingdom first then I don't coming along if you can spare the room?"

He slowly nodded, "I'm sure we can work somethan' out…"

"Hey Michonne!", Maggie welcomed as she walked into the room, carrying a bowl of salad, "Glad you can make it, just in time too because dinner is ready"

"It smells great", Michonne responded, though her eyes were primarily on the salad.

Glenn soon approached them with plates of pasta, and set them down in front of Michonne and Sasha first.

"Wish we had some garlic bread or something to go with it", Sasha sighed sadly.

"I noticed you don't grow wheat here?", Michonne frowned, looked from Sasha to Rick, "Your soil seems good enough"

"We don't have the seeds", Rick breathed as he sat back, allowing Glenn to put his plate down in front of him.

"We- the Sanctuary does. We found an old Mill next to a warehouse a while ago. They had dozens of bags of the stuff"

He raised his eyebrows at her, "Yeah?"

She nodded.

"I'll have to ask Dwight about that then"

Michonne was beginning to feel a little more at ease, and while she tried her best to engage in conversation with the others, she found herself branching off into other topics with Rick, which wasn't part of the plan at all. She was meant to be steering clear of him, and she wanted to kick herself for not having the willpower to do so.

"So how'd you get so good at wielding that sword of yours?", Sasha probed from behind her glass of wine.

Michonne put her fork down on her plate before she spoke, "Self-taught. I've always had an interest in it"

"That's cool. And handy", Glenn joked beside her.

"What made you want to teach yourself that?", Rick queried, resting one elbow on the table as he faced her.

She slid her eyes over to him, "I used to read a lot of comic books"

"Used to?", He raised an eyebrow at her.

"I don't own anywhere near as much as I used to. And even less now that your son's around"

His gaze dropped as he snickered.

"I heard the Anderson lady probing you about starting a school?", Abraham quizzed Rick, "Not much of a good idea considering she's proved herself to be a crappy babysitter?"

Rick sighed, "Yeah. I don't think it's a bad idea in general but to have her as a teacher just doesn't sit well with me"

"Damn right it doesn't. I wouldn't trust her to watch my favourite rock if I had one".

Michonne couldn't help releasing a little chuckle at the man's analogy, leading Rick to look over at her. She had noticed he would glance at her whenever she laughed, and it knocked her off centre when his cloudy eyes zeroed in on her.

When everyone had finished their meals, the sat patiently waiting for Maggie to bring out dessert. Sasha and Abraham had started their own hushed conversation, leaving Rick and Michonne to speak to each other.

"So where we're you before this?", He peered at her before taking at sip of his water.

"Before the walkers?", She looked at him for clarification.

He nodded.

"Atlanta. You?"

He sniffed as he put down his glass, "Not far from Atlanta, actually"

"Really? Small town?"

He nodded again, "Yeah, Kings County"

She smirked, " _Really_ small town"

He frowned at her, his lips poised to question her remark when continuous banging rang out from the front door. Everyone instantly stood from their seats as Glenn sprinted from the kitchen to open the door.

"I can't find Tyreese or Negan!", Scott announced, panting in the doorway, "The cell was empty!"

Michonne was already around the table as soon as she heard her friend's name, running past Glenn and Scott in the doorway. She couldn't have ran faster if she tried, but that didn't stop her, she knew she needed to move quickly.

She pounded up the stairs of her porch and burst through the door to retrieve her Katana, heading straight for the mantel piece. She grabbed her weapon of choice off its hooks by the handle, and picked up its case from against the wall.

"Alright, calm the fuck down"

Negan's voice made her jump, and she spun around to see she man sat on her couch, with an unconscious Tyreese in front of him. His boot was resting on the man's head while a rifle hung loosely in his good hand. He had Lucile resting across his lap, wearing his favourite leather jacket and a smile on his face.

"Close the door please 'Chonne. I don't want anybody interrupting us"


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16:

"This is a nice little house you have here. Not to my taste but, it's still very nice"

Michonne sat on the coffee table facing Negan with her katana in her hand, her eyes locked on him, "Thank you, now take your foot off his head"

Negan glanced down at Tyreese, "Nah… I think I'd rather rest it here-"

"He hasn't done anything to you-"

"Don't think I'm doing this because I dislike him. He's a fucking stand-up guy-"

"How did you get out?"

The man gave her a charming smile, "Funny story, because I had planned to get out anyway, but the opportunity presented itself to me when this fucking amazing guy right here, opened the cell to let me out… by himself!"

She glared at him.

"Once I had the rifle from him, he got us to your house… we actually had a little talk before I knocked him out… took a look around-"

She narrowed her eyes at him, "Why didn't you just leave?"

He smirked, "Without you?"

Her face fell into a blank expression.

"I couldn't just break out of this creepy little town alone, could I 'Chonne?", He tilted his head, pouting at her.

She slowly shook her head, "You won't leave here alive-"

"But with you by my side… I might just"

"No. You still wouldn't make it out alive-"

"We need a plan then, don't we?"

"Negan."

His eyes darkened as he realised she was reluctant to leave, "I hope you don't think you're getting me back in that fucking cell? Because you and I both know that's not happening"

She rolled her tongue around her teeth as she thought, "So say we get out of here, then what?"

He blinked at her.

"We can run but everyone would be looking for you. Not just Rick. The kingdom… the Hilltop… the Savior's… they'd all be hounding us and the fact that you're out of that cell means you're free to kill. I won't be able to protect you-"

"We'll figure it out. We always have, and we always will", His gaze dropped to Tyreese, who stirred beneath his foot, "Hey! How you doing down there, big guy?"

"Don't move Tyreese", Michonne instructed, her eyes never leaving Negan's face.

He watched her, "So, are you ready to go?"

She inhaled slowly, "We are still in a position to turn this all around-"

He moved his foot from his prisoner's head and replaced it with the rifle, "Are we?"

"Don't.", She bit out at him.

"If I blow this fuckers brain across this lovely rug of yours, then you know we definitely can't stay here", He tilted his head at her again, "So we can either figure out a way to leave peacefully-"

"Negan. No."

"Is this your final answer? Do I have to kill this big fuck?", He barely blinked, knowing he had her backed into a corner, "Because you know I don't mind-"

"I don't want to live out there like we did before", She breathed angrily, "That won't work-"

"Stop stalling 'Chonne", He ordered, "You need to decide. Now"

She exhaled tiredly, shaking her head, "Why do you have to put me in this position? Why? It's like you love to see how much pressure you can put on me to prove myself to you-"

"You're stalling-"

"I'm not fucking stalling! I am so sick of you! I'm trying to protect you! Do you not understand that?! After everything you did, you deserve to die, but the only reason you're still breathing is sitting right here in front of you!"

He raised his eyebrow at her, responding dryly, "So what's your call?"

Her heart beat seemed to have gotten louder, and hand gripped the handle of her sword, "You can't do this-"

"So I guess this asshole has to die then-"

"Fine!", She spat out as she stood up. She snatched his bat off his lap and stepped away from them, "Let's go!"

Negan began to grin, "That's my girl"

The last thing she wanted was for Negan to kill Tyreese, or anyone else for that matter, so she knew the only way to avoid such a thing from happening was to follow his wish.

"Go on Tyreese", Michonne opened the door for the man, who was sporting a swollen eye.

He shook his head, "I can't let you-"

"Go on!", She urged, tipping her head towards the door.

He hesitated, his eyes darting from her to Negan.

"You heard her", Negan reinforced, pointing towards the door with the rifle, "Unless you want to end up under my boot again?"

Tyreese glared at him, backing up towards the door. Michonne waited until both feet where over the threshold, before slamming the door closed and facing Negan, causing her friend of frown.

"I didn't want anyone else to get hurt", She sighed, resting the bat against the wall, "I can't let you leave"

He eyed her suspiciously, "I hope you're not trying to do what I think? Because that would be a very shitty thing to do-"

"I can't let you leave", She repeated, placing her sword beside the bat, "So put the gun down. Now."

He chuckled at her, "Do you seriously think I'm going to let you-"

She cut his sentence short with her fist, punching him square in the jaw. His head whipped to the side, causing him to almost lose his balance.

"I _won't_ let you leave", She shifted her stance, bringing her balled fists up in front of her.

He spat blood to the hardwood floor as he chuckled a second time, "I'll let that one slide-"

"No, you won't-"

"Yes it fucking will!", He barked, looking at her with angry eyes, "You cross this line with me Michonne, and there's no going back"

"I crossed the line when I took your hand", She challenged with a taunting tone.

He stared at her for a moment, before throwing the rifle down to the floor, then flicking his shoulders back so his jacket rolled down his arms, "If it's a fight you want, then it's a fight you get"

In all honesty, she didn't want to fight him, and she knew he didn't want to fight her either, but it was the only way she could stop him without harming anyone, besides him.

"Your move", He smirked, with a clenched fist.

She had seen Negan fight numerous times, she knew his strengths and his weaknesses, but sadly, he could say the same for her. The only disadvantage that he has was his form, but the fact that he had managed to take down Tyrese with one hand proved that it wasn't that much of a disadvantage at all.

She pretended as if she was going to punch him, knowing he'd grab her arm to stop her, and as soon as he had a good grip on her, she brought her leg up, delivering a roundhouse kick to his ribs. His breath hitched, but he still swung her around, slamming her against the wall. Pain shot through her head, though it wasn't enough for her to lose focus, and she used a small window of opportunity to jump on his back, getting her arm around his neck.

He grabbed her forearm with his hand, leaning forward as he tried to pry her off him. She held onto him for dear life, wrapping her legs around his waist, but he threw himself against the wall, crushing her against the picture frames. She felt a sharp pain tear through her shoulder, causing her cry out as she let go of him. She figured she had popped her arm out of the socket again, and she could have groaned at the fact, but she had no time to worry, as Negan picked her up by her waist and threw her back into the living area, sending her crashing into a small bookshelf.

"I'm trying my very best, not to hit you", He was barely out of breath as he strolled over to her, "I hope you appreciate that"

She soon found her footing and charged, throwing all her weight at him. It was only enough to cause him to stumble back, so she punched him again, finally getting him to the floor with her on top of him. The rifle was only a foot away from her, and she lunged for it, but Negan rolled over, pulling her away as he did. He pinned her down, finally beginning to show some exertion as his breaths quickened. He grabbed her by her neck with his good hand, slowly pushing all his weight on her throat as he leaned over her.

"Just say the word", He breathed, "And I'll let go"

She fought to get his hand off her throat, finding it difficult to breath, her legs flailing beneath him. The only way she could see herself out of hold, was to fight dirty, so she hit him in the throat when he was close enough, leading him to crumble on top of her. She shoved him off with all her might and scurried for the rifle. As soon as she had it in her hold, she scrambled to her feet, while he rested on one knee, coughing vigorously.

One blow to the back of his head was all it took, and he dropped to the ground with a thud.

She sat down beside him, trying to regulate her breathing, finally feeling a soreness in her head, shoulder and hip, muttering to herself, "Guess he should have hit me after all"

The front door burst open, and Rick was the first one in view, looking at her from behind the barrel of his gun. He stopped dead in his tracks, his eyes dropping to Negan on the ground.

"Took you long enough", She sighed.

Nothing but confusion registered on his face, but he still had his gun pointed at the man, "Glenn-"

"Yeah, let's get him", Glenn appeared from behind him, along with Abraham.

The red haired man snickered, "And she got Tyreese down with no problem, huh?"

"Come on", Glenn began to flip Negan over.

"It's just funny to me", Abraham grabbed the man by his shoulders, "We were running around like headless chickens while she was over her kicking ass and taking names-"

"Let's go".

Rick eyes bounced all around the living room and hallway, before landing back on Michonne, "You alright?"

She huffed, "I think I should just keep that key to myself from now on"

"Yeah…", He held out his hand to her.

She began to reach out with her dislocated shoulder, but pain radiated from it, so she switched arms, "I busted it. Again"

He pulled her up, "What happened?"

"He wanted us to go. I sent Tyreese on his way and then the two of us got into it", She summarised, resting her hand on her sore hip.

Rick bit his lip as his gaze dropped, "I knew he'd be a problem"

"Not anymore he won't. I won't let that key out of my sight and I don't want anyone else down there but me-"

"Your gonna stand watch twenty four hours a day?", He cocked his head at her.

"If I have to, then yes", She shrugged, only wincing a little from the move.

"That's not happening. We'll have two people on him and that's it-"

"I don't want anyone else in danger again. He needs to have someone there that can-"

"He's lucky I haven't put a bullet between his eyes for what he's done to you", His hand motioned over her, "And Tyreese for that matter. He'll learn not to make a move like this again"

She stared blankly over his shoulder, hardly in the mood to argue with him.

"I'll be back to help with your shoulder, and I'll send someone over to help clean this place up", He instructed, before stalking out of her home.

She watched him leave before finally grimacing, rubbing her hip in a soothing motion. After everything that had happened, she was left questioning where her friendship with Negan stood. They had never fought before, and cutting off his hand had been the only kind of physical pain inflicted between the two of them. The fact they had now raised their hands to each other could change everything. She wished she wouldn't have to go to such lengths with him, but he rarely ever gave her a choice.

Sasha came over to help clear her home, sweeping up the glass and throwing out the broken picture frames. It was unnecessary as she could do it all herself, though she was in no rush to, as she was sure she was beginning to bruise, so the extra pair of hands were welcome.

She was about to make her way upstairs once they had finished and Sasha had left, when another knock came from her front door. She groaned as she turned around and stepped gingerly to see who it was.

"You can wait until morning to do this", She suggested as she moved aside to let Rick in.

"I think it's better to fix it sooner rather than later", He stomped past her, looking around her home, "Sasha came over then?"

"Yeah. She left a few minutes ago", Michonne closed the door behind him.

"Alright", He sniffed, turning back to face her.

She walked to the living room, "Is he back in his cell?"

"Yeah. I'm waiting for him to come around… I think I need to talk to him"

She sat on her couch, "Is that necessary?"

"Very", He responded firmly, "Lay down"

She did as she was told, while he kneeled beside her again. She still wore her halter top, which made it easier for him to begin, as he took her arm in his hands. The pain was near enough unbearable, and she covered her mouth with her hand as soon as she felt the urge to cry out.

"Hold on…", He whispered, concentrating hard on the task, "There it is"

He shoved her arm back in her socket and a muffled howl rang out behind her hand.

"You should probably try not to do anythan' with this arm for a while", He sighed, his fingers slowly massaging her shoulder, "This is the second time… I don't even think it's healed from the first yet"

Her eyes rolled open, her hand moving from her mouth, "That's not an option now"

"It is. Just rest it. No good of you having that sword if you can't even use it"

She was going to say something, when it dawned on her that he was still touching her. While her arm still hurt, his touch was a pleasant one, distracting her from the discomfort she felt.

"You can put somethan' cold on it now… help keep the swelling down…"

She could hear his words loud and clear but she found herself focusing on his touch more. His other hand held her wrist, and she hoped he couldn't feel the change in her pulse through his thumb.

"Better?"

It was as if her mouth was filled with cotton, and all she could do was nod.

His hand slipped from her arm, and she could breathe again. She sat up and threw her feet back down to the ground, "Thank you"

"No problem", He grunted as he rose from his knees and sat beside her, "Listen, I think we need to work some kind of punishment out for him. He can't get away with this"

The topic want one that she wasn't ready for, as her skin was still warm from his touch, "Can we go over this tomorrow? I took a hit to the head so… I'm starting to feel it"

His gaze sailed up to her hair, then back down to her eyes, "Alright"

"Thanks"

Rick Grimes was proving to be terrible at recognising his cues to leave, as he didn't move, but neither did she. Something about being under his watch made her feel powerless, and she had to summon great will power to look away, but for whatever reason, it was impossible in that moment. The longer his eyes burned into hers, the harder it became for her catch her breath. His gaze dropped to her chest when his tongue ran along his teeth, and the way his eyes crawled back up to her face made her stomach flutter.

"I know I should probably go but, I'm having a hard time with that", He almost whispered, his southern twang dripping from each word as they left his mouth.

"Yeah…", was all she could breathe weekly.

He closed the small distance between them with ease, his fingers resting on her neck, his lips hovering in front of hers, "Do you want me your stop?"

"You wouldn't have got this far If I did…"

A smiled tugged on his lips as he pressed them against hers. Michonne wanted to kick herself for moaning into the kiss so quickly but she could hardly help it. The cologne she could smell off him earlier still lingered faintly on him, his beard brushed over her chin as he parted her lips with his, and his tongue greeted hers with a stroke.

Both of his hands slipped to her waist as she laced her arms around his shoulders, immersing herself in the contact. The only thing on her mind was how her tasted, how his lips moved, and how his fingers gripped her.

She couldn't pinpoint the moment when the kiss became more feverish, but she felt a fire beginning to burn between her legs when his hands ran up her bare back.

"Bedroom?", She hissed against his lips.

" _Anywhere_ you want", He mumbled, pulling her onto his lap to straddle him, then standing up and marching to the stairs.

She sucked and bit on his neck as he carried her, while he held her close to him, his hold on her tightening whenever her teeth grazed his skin. Her initial plan to stay away from him had failed quite miserably, and she accepted the fact while she was in his strong arms, ready to ride him into the night.


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17:

"Now, maybe it's just me, but I feel like we got a little ahead of ourselves here…"

Michonne covered her hand with her mouth as she giggled beneath Rick, and he took great pleasure in seeing her laugh, especially from something he said, "Yeah. I think we did…"

"Where does it hurt?", His eyes roamed all over her body while he rested on his hands above her.

"Uh, well, just about everywhere…", She winced, shifting her hips slightly.

"I can take you to go and see Rosita? She can check you out-"

"No. It's fine. I know it's just a few sore spots, they'll probably clear up in a couple of days"

He examined her for a few more moments, looking from her shoulder, down to her hip, before nodding, "Alright then…"

"This was nice though. Well… until we got up here…"

He chuckled, "Yeah it was… I think next time, we should probably-"

"Next time, huh?", She raised an eyebrow at him, flashing him a teasing smile, "You're really getting ahead of yourself, aren't you?"

He bit his lip as he tried to suppress a chuckle, "I'm sure it was you that said ' _Bedroom_ '?"

"That was just a test"

"A test? What kind of test was that?"

"To see if you were a true gentleman", She mocked, tapping him on his arm.

He snickered, "I think I was a gentleman, I carried you up the stairs, didn't I?"

"You did…"

"Exactly"

The moon projected the perfect amount of light into her room, and her eyes appeared to shine as she looked up at him. He didn't even care about the raging hard on that was being crushed in his jeans, his focus was purely devoted to recording every expression she made when she talk to him.

"So…", She sighed, still wearing a faint smile, "What happens now?"

"Uh, well, we kinda skipped a few thangs…"

"What? Like a few dates?"

His eyes darted to the pillow beneath her head, then back to her face, "Well, yeah?"

She rolled her eyes playfully, "We don't have the luxury of all that, I'm afraid"

"What do _you_ suppose then?", He challenged, tilting his head at her.

She gave a one sided shrug, "Maybe we should just see each other… more"

He nodded casually, though the possibility of seeing her more made his pulse race, "That sounds good to me"

"Then that's what we'll do"

"Alright… let me just get off you-"

"You don't have to…"

He raised an eyebrow at her, causing her to chortle in way that he found adorable. He wasted no time leaning down and pressing his lips against hers. He had discovered that kissing her was his second favourite thing to do, with the first being to stare at her. She was a sensual kisser, her tongue moved tenderly around his mouth and little moans would leave her occasionally. Her lips were so soft and warm, and he was sure he could continue the contact until his mouth went numb.

Her good arm wrapped around his shoulders, while her other hand sat comfortably at the base of his neck. He was sure they could continue this way without hurting her, until she took his lip between her teeth, leading him to press his hips against her crotch.

She moaned at first, before grimacing, "Ouch!-"

"Okay, I'm getting off now", Rick didn't need to be told twice, so he pushed himself up and moved to sit on the edge of the bed, helping her to sit up too, "I think we should leave all that alone for a while…"

"Yeah", She smirked, fixing her halter top. They sat in a comfortable silence for a moment before she sighed, "Dinner was nice-"

"It was", He quickly agreed, "Shame we missed desert"

"I know. Apple pie is my favourite" .

"Mine too. And Carl's. Probably Judith's when she has it".

She seemed to struggle with her words for a moment, "I met her today. I saw her with Carl… in the street"

"Yeah? She was probably giving him hell"

A light chuckle left her, "She's… lovely"

Rick peered at her, noticing the mixed tone of her voice and the way she toyed with her pendant. The reason for her change in demeanour soon dawned on him, and the next question flew out of his mouth before he had a chance to consider it, "Is the 'A' for…"

She glanced at him for barely a second, her hand dropping to her lap, answering quietly, "Yeah."

"Alright…", He ran his tongue over his teeth as he tried to think of a different topic, not wishing for her to close up to him, "So... he wanted the two of you to leave?"

Her eyes crept back over to him, "Yeah. That was his plan"

He slowly began to nod, then stopped "Can I ask you somethan'?"

She raised both eyebrows at him, "Depends on what it is?"

"Well, it's a about you and… him?"

Her eyes studied him hurriedly, "Go on..."

He bit the inside of his cheek as he considered the next question, "Do you think thangs between the two of you will be the same after earlier? I mean, you beat him up and didn't run away with him?"

Her gaze dropped from his face, "I don't know"

He figured that would be her answer, "Well, I think he'll realise that you did it to protect him one day, because if I had found him first, I would have killed him"

"I know… and then I would have had to kill you", She looked him dead in the eye when she made the comment.

"I know…", He was tempted to snort at her, but he decided against it, "So, I'm glad we got that out the way for the tenth time…"

She snickered, shaking her head at him, "Yeah."

"I might wait until morning to talk to him… I gotta get home and check on Carl and Judith…", He sighed as he stood up, and she did as well, "We can talk about a punishment and all that tomorrow too"

"Yeah, that's fine"

He left the bedroom first and she followed after him, and he managed to suppress the urge to pat himself on the back for not panicking about being in her bedroom.

"I can, uh, drop by tomorrow night, if Carl ain't over here raiding your comic book collection", Rick suggested as they approached her front door.

"I'll be sure to see him in the day then", She smiled, and Rick had to stop bite his lips together to stop himself from giving her a goofy smile.

"Alright. Well, goodnight"

"Night"

His hand was on the doorknob, ready to leave but he didn't move. Now he knew what it felt like to kiss her, touch her, even talk to her about more than just the trivial things, he didn't want to move. He didn't want to leave her just yet.

"Uh…", a bashful smile formed on his face, "I'll just-"

"Yeah", She laughed, resting her hands on her hips, "Bye"

"Bye"

He finally left her home, and the night breeze on his skin worked wonders to cool him down.

Everything made sense to him the moment he saw her after her fight with Negan. The image of her sat beside the man's body, looking completely downtrodden, made him want to comfort her, and care for her, the way she never failed to do for Negan. Her strength and her resolve were qualities he didn't look for in the women he found attractive. He would pride himself on being the knight in shining armour to a damsel, as that was the dynamic he was used to. However, this alpha female was the complete opposite of everything he knew, and he found himself reduced to a fumbling moron from her fortitude, as well as her eyes.

He didn't think he could have an obsession with someone eyes, but he learnt he was grossly mistaken.

The next day, he all but skipped around his home in the morning. He bathed his daughter and fed her breakfast as he had grown accustomed to doing. He even sang to her while she sat in her high chair, and he made breakfast for he and Carl.

"Did something happen last night? You came home late?", His son quizzed as he trudged into the kitchen, his hair still damp from his shower.

"Yeah, Negan got out", Rick answered in a tone that didn't quite translate the seriousness of the situation.

"What?", Carl stopped dead in his tracks, his hand on the fridge door, "Why-how-"

"Don't worry, he's back in his cell. He managed to get Tyreese's weapon of him when he was on watch, but we got him… well, Michonne stopped him"

His son didn't move.

"We handled it. I mean that"

Carl seemed to only relax a fraction, after a few moments, "Good. I didn't think that would happen so soon"

"It won't happen again. It was just a slip up but, still."

"You don't seem that worried?"

Rick adjusted his tone, "I was when it happened, but, he's back in his cell"

"At least you don't look as bad as you did after the first fight you had with him", Carl's eyes scanned over his father, "Except for those little bruises there"

Rick's eyes followed his son's finger, where he was pointing at his neck. His chest tightened, and he ran his hand over the area that Michonne had almost devoured the night before, "Yeah, uh, he got me..."

"What are you going to do now then?", His son pressed.

"We're working out some kind of punishment for him", He turned to face his son, noting the concern look her wore, "Don't worry, we're gonna a tighten thangs up. And if he tries anythan' like that again, I'll take care of him. I can promise you that"

The teen shifted uncomfortably, "Michonne probably won't like that."

He reluctantly nodded, "I know"

Carl finally opened the fridge, while Rick continued to cut fruits for breakfast, "Should I give Judith her bottle?"

"We're out of milk-"

"No, we're not, I hid it so you and Daryl wouldn't use it in your cereal", Carl informed evilly, taking out a bottle of milk from the fridge, "Michonne doesn't eat dairy, so she said we can use her share from the pantry"

Rick's eyebrows rose, "Really?... I'll have to thank her for that then"

The day had barely started and yet, he found himself saying Michonne's name multiple times, though he wasn't complaining. He knew his son had found a new friend, and he would occasionally drop her name in conversations anyway, but now Rick was in a position to comment, positively.

He left his home shortly after eating breakfast with his son, and he made a beeline for Negan's cell. The idea to just end the man's life had crossed his mind many of times, but he knew it would only open up a new set of problems for him. He did want to make him suffer however, and the cell was the best place for it. He knew he hated it in his little prison, and the was the only comfort he could take away from their arrangement.

"Any problems?", He questioned Scott as he walked down the steps to the basement.

"None", Scott informed, looking up from the book he held in his hands.

Bruce was sat by the cell door, also reading a book, though he perked up when he saw Rick.

"Give us a minute", Rick instructed, tipping his head to the front door.

Bruce nodded, standing from his seat and stretching his arms as he stepped out the house. Rick took his seat and faced it towards the door, where he had a clear view of Negan. The man was sat with his back against the wall, on the floor, with a cut on the corner of his mouth, and another on the lid of his eye, with a light purple bruises surrounding it. He snarled at Rick.

"Bad move yesterday, huh?", Rick sighed, sitting back, bringing an ankle up to rest on his knee.

"Nah. It was fun", Negan sniggered, "Bet I had you fucktards pissing your panties-"

"Doesn't look like you had fun", Rick squinted at him, "You definitely didn't look like you were having fun when you were getting carried back in here. In fact, I have a question... you had all that time to find a way out of here… but you stayed? Why?"

The other man pursed his lips, "I had some shit to collect"

"You could have just taken what you wanted from Michonne's house", He shrugged, "Got what you wanted and left, but you didn't?"

Negan titled his head at him, "What the fuck are you digging for you piece of shit farmer?

"I'm just trying to help you figure out where your plan went wrong. That's all", He replied in a nonchalant tone.

"You're lucky I didn't find out where you and your little piss stain of a kid lay your heads-"

"But you didn't. You went to Michonne's… hoping she'd leave with you, but she didn't want to do that did she? She put you right back here where you belong", the words fell from Rick's mouth like bricks, "Doesn't that tell you somethan'?"

Negan's eyes narrowed, his attitude taking a turn for the worse, "Oh, I was right about you. I was right on the bull's nuts. The fucking cowboy is trying to lay claim on somethan' he can't have-"

"I don't lay claim on anyone", Rick corrected firmly, "But she's a resident here now, so that means she's one of our people-"

"Oh please, save the speech for those assholes-"

"She stopped you didn't she?", He cocked his head at the man, "She stopped you hurting Tyreese? One of our people?"

Negan sniggered at him, "Oh you're good. You're really fucking good, but cut that leader bullshit out. You know exactly what I'm talking about you bag of shit, and let me tell you something, she'd slit your throat and pull your tongue through the wound to make it look like you're wearing a fucking tie, before she'd let you anywhere near her"

Rick stared at the man with utter glee, before a taunting smile spread across his lips, "Well, she did _somethan_ ' to my neck, but as you can see, it wasn't that"

To see Negan's face contort in confusion and anger brought Rick great joy, "What the fuck did you just say?"

"Oh, you heard me", Rick stood up with a happy sigh, "Now, just a little reminder, that if you do try to pull a stunt like that again, it will be a bullet that takes you down"

The man glowered, barely blinking.

"So, if you don't mind, I've got a community to run, and you… well, you don't"

He left the man fuming, and Rick felt content at being the cause of his rage. He knew it was childish, and the more he thought about it, the more he hoped that his admission wouldn't add to Michonne's burdens, or have a negative impact towards what was forming between them.

"Hey Rick!"

He turned to the sound of Glenn's voice, and to his surprise, he was with Jesus, strolling towards him from further up the street, "What's going on?"

"Hey", Jesus greeted, wearing an expression that Rick struggled to read, "We just arrived. I thought we'd see how things were going over here"

"Good", Rick nodded as they met each other on the curb, "The Hilltop?"

"It's coming along even better than before. Much better. We expanded the wall a couple yards, more space to grow crops. And we found two more trailers"

"Yeah? Well that's good then"

"I told him about what happened yesterday", Glenn confessed, tucking his hands in his pockets.

"Oh yeah, Negan", Rick exhaled, tired of the man's name.

"I understand that it's probably not easy keeping him", Jesus's eyes darted to the home where Negan was kept, "But I don't think this is something you want getting out…"

"Believe me, I don't. It was a slip up, and it's not happening again. Two people are staying by his cell from now on, and I've instructed them all that if he even tries anything like that again, then they shoot him"

Jesus slowly began to nod, "Reasonable"

"I was reasonable when I didn't kill him last night. I'm done with that now", Rick's eyes scanned the area behind the two men.

"There was actually something I wanted to talk to you about…"

"Go on?"

Jesus took a small step back, "We came across a small burnt up town when we were out on a run...and at first we thought it might have been left over from when Negan was in charge… but it looked fresh, there was still smoke coming off one of the buildings… and there were heads lined up on the fence…"

Rick's eyes narrowed at Jesus, "Heads?"

"Maybe thirty? Men, women… even children… And they weren't walkers, they looked like they had just been killed, their mouths were clean…"

"Where was this?"

"About fifty miles west from us"

"Could be another camp?", Glenn removed his hands from his pocket and crossed his arms, "Or just a little group… Like the wolves?"

Rick looked to Glenn for a moment, then back to Jesus, "We have a trade with the Kingdom tomorrow, we'll ask Ezekiel about it, then go check it out ourselves"

"Alright. I can come along? Lead you there?"

"You'll do that then".

After everything that had happened with the Savior's, Rick wasn't taking any risks. If there was another community that posed a threat to them all, then he wanted to know sooner, rather than later, and unlike previously, he would be prepared from the beginning.


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18:**

 _'Stop it, Michonne. Just stop'_

Michonne reprimanded herself as she walked out of her bedroom a third time, after a third outfit change. She didn't know why she felt it necessary to fuss with her clothing, but she didn't exactly know what vibe she was meant to be sending Rick. It wasn't as if it would matter anyway, but she just wanted to look noticeably nice, but without looking as if she put too much thought into her outfit.

After the fourth outfit change, she settles on a black gypsy top, and her dark blue jeans. She purposely ran down the stairs to avoid the urge change again.

As neither of them had specified if they were having dinner or not, Michonne had prepared a vegetable casserole and left it in the oven just in case. She felt so silly for running around her home like she had no sense, when she had only seen Rick the previous night, and even then she was prepared to sleep with him, despite her bruised and battered body.

When she heard a knock at the door as evening approached, she closed her eyes for a moment, drawing in long, soothing breaths. She purposely walked at a snail's pace to the entrance of her home, so she didn't seem like a hurried mess when Rick saw her.

"Hey", He smiled, turning from the street to face her.

A shiver tickled her spine, "Hey, come in"

He stepped into her home with a smooth strut, and it had been the first time she'd witnessed him not stomping everywhere. She closed the door behind him and he stopped just short of the living area.

"Go right in", She instructed lightly, following behind him.

"How was your day?", He asked once he took a seat on the couch.

"Pretty good. Carl came by, then I went to see Daryl, talked to him about going on a run…", She informed, taking a seat beside him.

"Oh yeah? Well we have that trip to the kingdom tomorrow, if you still wanna come along?"

"Yeah, I'd be glad to", She sighed while crossing her legs, "So, what about your day?"

A little groan left him, "I feel like I spent most of it on my feet. Jesus is here, he came to talk to us about somethan' he found… he wants us to check it out…"

"Oh?", She raised an eyebrow at him.

"Yeah, a burnt up town, he said it looked like everyone there was killed recently"

Michonne's eyes narrowed, "A town?"

"He said maybe thirty people"

Her eyes sailed away from him for a moment as she thought, "Alright".

"Did you go and see…"

"No. Not today… did you speak to him?"

Rick took a moment to answer, his eyes landing on something else, "I did"

"And?"

She couldn't help but noticed the way he hesitated before he spoke, his gaze creeping back over to her, "I probably did somethan' that I shouldn't have"

Her brow began to furrow with confusion, "What?"

"Well, he has it in his mind that I've been trying to 'lay claim' on you and-"

"Oh god", She groaned, turning away from him.

"I didn't exactly tell him everythan', I just kinda-"

"Why?"

He exhaled through his nose, "He seems to think that you would 'slit my throat and pull my tongue through the wound to make it look like I was wearing a tie' if I went near you"

She could almost hear Negan making the threat in her mind, "So you thought you'd tell him what happened?"

"No", He drug the word out to emphasis his point, "I… just told him that you did somethan'. Just not that"

A growl almost left her, "Rick-"

"I know-"

"No. You are going to listen. Don't use this", She waved her finger between the two of them, "As a reason to get at him because it won't go down well for us. I get that the two of you don't like each other and I expect that, but I'm not to be toyed with-"

"That wasn't what I-"

"Making little quips about what's going on between us is toying with me! You don't use me to get at him! You already know that that our friendship is on rocky ground right now and I don't appreciate you making things worse"

He groaned, raking his fingers through his hair, "You're right".

"I know", She fumed, sitting back against the couch, "You don't have to like our friendship but if you respect me then you'll respect it"

"You're right", He repeated, raising his hands as in surrender.

"I _know_ "

"Can I say somethan' now?", He asked softly, tilting his head to catch her gaze.

She raised her eyebrow at him.

"I was wrong for it. I admit that. I saw a chance to really piss him off and I damn near ran with it. But I'm sorry"

She sighed, dropping her head back against the couch, "Well. I'll just have to deal with that"

"...Can I ask why he feels that way?"

She tilted her head to glance at him, "Because he's just… Negan"

"You think he'd react that way if you were involved with someone else?"

"If he had the same problem as he did with you? Then yes", She answered dryly, "Have you forgotten everything that's happened?"

He bit his lip, his gaze roaming the room, "Makes sense".

"Yeah…", The thought of seeing Negan became an even harder one, as she had already decided to wait a few days to visit his cell. Knowing now that Rick had informed him of their tryst, only made her dread their pending conversation even more.

He turned his head to look at her, "I am sorry, though. I mean it. It was stupid and I should have been more considerate to you"

She was in no rush to accept his apology, "You should be… and next time-"

"There won't be a next time. I promise"

"Good."

They sat in silence, the tension in the air slowly seeping away as Michonne tried to relax again, but it was difficult, as she was still very, very annoyed with him.

"I really don't want that to mess this up"

She looked at him, "Well, neither do I"

He smiled at her, his steel blue eyes radiating warmth, and it made her heart flutter.

She forced herself to look away from him, "Uh, so-"

"Why do you do that?", He quizzed with an amused tone, "You always look away first?"

She was taken aback by his candour, "Would you rather I didn't?"

"I'd rather stare at you some more", He raised an eyebrow in a flirtatious manner, giving her a teeth baring smile.

A little moan nearly escaped her, "Well I guess you should have thought about that before you let the cat out of the bag to Negan"

His smile fell from his face.

She raised her eyebrows at him playfully as she stood up, "Come on, I made dinner"

"I just apologised for that-"

"You did"

He followed her to the kitchen, "Did you not accept my apology?"

"I never said I did", She shrugged, ready to hang him on tenterhooks, when he took hold of her forearm and spun her to face him.

There was barely an inch of space between them, his hands found her waist and held her against him, "I told you, I am sorry"

Being so close to him would be her undoing, "I know"

"Then will you forgive me?", His lips brushed the tip of her nose, his breath spilling into her mouth.

She rested her hands on his biceps to create some distance between them, but feeling his tensed muscles beneath his denim shirt only fuelled the heat growing between her legs, "I have to think about it…"

He raised an eyebrow again, "What do I have to do to make it up to you?"

Her knees nearly buckled, "I'll have to think about that, too"

The corner of his mouth curled into a smile, "Fine".

She found the strength to break away from him, turning back to the kitchen, "Vegetable casserole?"

He leaned against the counter with a groan, "Sounds great. And I wanted to thank you for the milk by the way. Carl told me"

"No problem", She took out two plated for them and set them down on the counter.

"...Can I ask how you started out?"

She glanced at him, "How I started out?"

"Yeah", He nodded, "In all this?"

She withheld a sigh as she turned to the oven, "I was in Atlanta, things got bad so I left… met Negan and we-"

"Is that the short version?"

She looked at him from over her shoulder, "Did you want the long version?"

His gaze leered around her, "I'd like to know about you, if that's alright?"

She took the casserole dish out and placed it on the island, "Is that necessary?"

He frowned, his head jerking back, "Well it's not necessary, but I'd like to know"

She imagined it was a topic he wasn't going to lay to rest so easily, so she released the sigh, dropping the oven mitt beside the dish, "I was with my boyfriend and my son, I left them to go look for food and when I came back my son was dying and so was he. I killed him, and I took my son. He changed and I still couldn't kill him so I just kept him with me. Negan found us, did what I couldn't do and that's where we started out. Better?"

Rick's expression was a stunned one, and he only moved to shift his stance against the counter.

"I don't know how hungry you are…", She grabbed the spoon and began dishing food onto a plate, "Just eat whatever you want or how much you want-"

Her sentence came to a halt when Rick held her hand. She looked up at him with furrowed brows, and attempted to pull away, but the man was strong.

"That wasn't better", He rasped quietly, "And I didn't mean for you to tell me like that"

"What did you mean then? You wanted me to start crying and fall to the floor in a sad heap?", She countered in a cutting tone.

"No", He responded firmly, still holding her arm, "Not like that either"

"Then what? You asked and I told you and that should be it-"

"I'm sorry that happened to you. And I'm sorry if it's hard for you to talk about. I just wanted to know more about you, and I didn't mean to bring somethan' up that you weren't ready to discuss"

She averted her gaze elsewhere, hating the sombre turn of the conversation, "It's fine"

"No it's not. I know it's not"

She was tempted to recoil from him, but all she could do is huff, looking back down at the plates in front of her, "Are you going to let me finish now?"

His thumb stroked over the skin on her wrist before he released her, leaning back on the counter, "Not a lot of people know about that, right?"

"No. They don't", She resumed to dishing out their dinner.

He slowly nodded as he watched what she was doing, "Well, thank you for telling me. And not hitting me for asking in the first place"

She bit her cheek to stop a smile, "I wouldn't have hit you for asking."

"I think I'd probably deserve it if you did hit me"

She smirked, "You definitely would"

"I'm glad you seem so pleased to agree", He chuckled as he crossed his arms over his chest, "So you never did tell me what you mean by that small town comment?"

Her eyes widened a fraction, "Oh. You remember that…"

"I do. I'll have you know that I'm a proud, small town, country boy-"

"I don't doubt that at all", She snuck a glance at him, "It practically radiates off of you"

"Ain't that a good thang?"

She dared to look at him again, "If you're into that sort of _thang_ "

He snickered at her, "Well, are you?"

She rolled her eyes at his brazen attitude, "You're here, aren't you?"

"Is that your way of saying yes?"

She picked up the plates and forks, then strolled past him, "It's my way of letting you keep your neck intact"

He chortled as he followed her to the breakfast table, "Alright, let me guess. You were one of those city girls, strutting around on the phone all day…"

She raised her eyebrows at him as she placed his plate down, "Strutting around?"

"You know what I mean. Wearing fancy shoes and all dressed up to go to work-"

Laughter burst from her lips, "Fancy shoes?"

He cocked his head at her as he sat down, "Are you laughing at me?"

"Of course I am", She giggled while she joined him, "What's a _fancy shoe_? Do you mean heels? Heels where a fancy shoe?"

"To me they were. My wife…", He dropped his gaze as he picked up his fork, "Those were thangs she wore when it was a special or somethan'... not every day"

The thought of him having a wife never crossed her mind, though it was quite obviously a possibility, especially as he had a child so young. Unlike him, however, she didn't like to pry, so she swiftly avoided the subject, "So Kings County was a laid back town, I take it?"

"It was"

"What did you do? Farmer? Cowboy?", She teased, an evil grin spreading across her face.

He pursed his lips at her, "Deputy"

Her eyes lit up, "Oh, even better, Deputy Rick. You had a hat, right?"

"I still do. Carl wears it sometimes when we're out"

She felt as if she hit a gold mine of information, "He does? And a badge? Tell me he has the badge too?"

"He does", Rick could barely eat as he started to laugh.

"I'm going to have a field day the next time I see him!", She cackled, "Deputy Carl"

"I'm glad the two of you are getting along. He's not usually as trusting. Well, we both aren't but-"

"He's nicer about it", She deadpanned, slipping a fork full of carrots into her mouth.

He sighed, "I apologised for all that-"

"You did."

Eating dinner with Rick was even more pleasing than she expected. She had grown to love the sound of his laugh, and the way his eyes appeared to shine when he smiled. They bounced off each other with great ease, and she found her cheeks hurt by the end of their meals. It was hard to believe that this was a man she near enough hated only weeks ago.

However, he still annoyed her. He was bullish, and had a tendency to be reckless, and it was a side of him that she had decided to tame, but beneath it all she could see he was a good man, and he cared about his people, which attracted her to him. The fire that burned within him seemed to match hers, and it was something she couldn't ignore anymore.

"So we like to leave early… usually around nine"

"Yeah? That's fine", She nodded as she put the plates in the sink.

"I can come by and get you if you'd like?", Rick offered, leaning on the counter next to her.

She sniggered at him, "Such chivalry. Next thing you know, you'll be offering to carry my katana"

"And I'll let you hold my python", the smile he wore slowly faded away once the sentence left his mouth.

Michonne roared with laughter.

"You know what I meant", He slapped his hand to his forehead, "It didn't sound that bad in my head-"

"Oh, I'm sure it didn't"

"Stop that"

" _Why, Deputy_ ", She teased in her best southern accent as she inched past him, " _I do declare_ -"

He reached for her by her waist and pulled her towards him, "What was that?"

She raised her eyebrows at him as her head reeled back, "Maybe _you_ have something to declare?"

He smiled down at her, "I do. I'd like to kiss you, if you'd allow me?"

"You're allowed", He barely let her finish her sentence before leaning in to press his lips against hers. She would have swooned if he hadn't held her by her waist. She parted his lips with her own, and his tongue slithered into her mouth without prompt.

His hold on her tightened, and he gently pushed her back against the island in the middle of the kitchen. She rested her hands on either side of his neck, relishing in the feel of his strong body against hers. It was silly of her to think they could just kiss, especially after feeling his bulge through his jeans.

"Michonne…", He whispered against her lips when she began unbuttoning his shirt, "Wait, just wait a second-"

"What?", She hissed, pulling back an inch to look at him.

"I don't want to hurt you", His hands stroked up and down her arms.

She resisted the urge to roll her eyes, "There's ways around it"

He frowned as she kissed him again, and she knew he was wondering what that meant. It was endearing that he was trying to be careful with her, and she was still sore from it all, but she had been through worse, and there were indeed ways around her injuries.

She all but ripped his shirt from his body, and began peppering kisses along his broad chest as she worked on his belt. His hands roamed up and down her back, his fingers slipping down the back of her jeans.

As soon as she had his belt off and his jeans undone, she turned and faced the counter, pulling her top off over her head.

"Oh…", He seemed to realise where she was heading.

She peered over her shoulder at him as she pulled her jeans and her underwear over her round, plump ass, "Problem?"

His head tilted when his gaze dropped to her bare behind, and he sighed, "Never."

He seemed to have caught up with her, as both hands soon found her hips and his erection slipped between her thighs. She instinctively rubbed her folds on his length, causing them both to moan from the sensation. She rolled her hips back and forth, coating him in her juices until she felt his tip at her entrance. He slowly pushed into her, and her eyes widened at the size of him. She felt a mixture of pain and pleasure, leading her to cry out grip the edge of the counter.

"You alright?", He rasped in her ear.

She nodded, resting one hand on his neck, "Yeah, just… be careful with that"

A little chuckle left him before his mouth found her neck, and he drove himself deeper. Her breath hitched when he filled her with every inch whilst tonguing at her skin, his free hand massaging one of her breast. She melted against him, allowing her head to fall back on to his shoulder.

He started to rock his hips into her, as if he was attempting to go deeper. It had been so long since she had been intimate, but she knew that Rick wasn't the usual standard of her past lovers. He was electrifying, and he invaded her with more than just his shaft.

His hand moved from her breast and wrapped around her waist, while the other held the counter firmly. He picked up the pace, his thrusts becoming more pronounced and purposeful. A dull pain in her hip acted as a reminder to her that she was still not at her best, but she refused to let it interrupt the moment.

"Is that alright?", He breathed, his head reposed against hers as his lips grazed her ear.

"Yes", She panted, barely able to formulate another word.

She didn't want to feeling to end. She desperately wanted to have him, so she tilted her head to catch his lips, and he met her with ease. The kiss seemed to excite him, as he was soon slamming into her with hurry. She cried out, her head rolling forward as he made her bounce against him. Her arm grew tired of putting so much pressure on it to steady herself, so she laid flat on counter, the marble surface feeling cool on her hot skin.

Rick's caressed her toned back before settling at her waist, "My god, Michonne"

Her orgasm was near, and she was thankful, as the act was taking its toll on her. She stood on her toes, raising her ass higher for him, and a guttural groan left him as he pounded her with a vengeance. It dawned on her that she was being careless, as the man was bare as he pumped her. She hoped he still had some bearings left, and he would know not to release himself inside her.

Her back arched while she cried out, her walls gripping his shaft as she shattered before him, and it was only moments later that his thrust became more sporadic, and he quickly withdrew himself, his load pouring between her cheeks.

Michonne couldn't move. She wanted to but, she couldn't. Rick had calmed, and he had taken to massaging her lower back as she laid there.

"I thought we were gonna wait?"

One of her eyes rolled open tiredly, "A little too late for that, wouldn't you agree?"

"You did pounce on me…"

She turned around and faced him at record speed, "I pounced on you?"

He bit his lips together, suppressing the urge to laugh, as he wrapped his arms around her waist, their bare chests pressing against each other, "I wanna do this again"

"Alright, relax, we just finished-"

"Not that. Well… that could happen again. I wouldn't mind, at all", He sniggered, "But this. I liked this. A lot. And I want to do again"

"We will…", She wasn't sure why she felt dubious about the request, but she didn't want him made aware of the fact, "Maybe not tomorrow… we'll probably be out all day and… but after that?"

He rose an eyebrow at her as he nodded, "That's fine"

"Good".

He didn't bother to ask to kiss her the third time, as his lips were growing accustomed to finding hers. They had created a little world of their own in her home, but she knew once they stepped outside her front door, it wouldn't be as magical, and Negan would be more than happy to bring her crashing back down to reality.


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter 19:

"What's got you in such a good mood?"

Rick tried to reel back his smile when he noticed Sasha watching him, "Does it look like I'm in a good mood?"

"Well you're smiling. I could probably count how many times I've seen you do that", She smirked, adjusting her rifle strap on her shoulder.

"Thanks", He responded dryly, looking over his shoulder at the rest of the town, "Abraham coming?"

"Yeah, he said he would"

"Good. He can drive".

"We all set?", Glenn appeared from the other side of the RV with Jesus, who was followed by Maggie, "We got everything loaded up already"

"Just waiting on a few", Sasha replied, stepping on to the vehicle.

The humming of a motorcycle echoed throughout the town on the quiet morning, and Daryl soon approached them, wearing his usual indifferent expression.

"Who else are we waiting for?"

Rick looked back to the RV door to see Michonne leaning on it, her arms folded over her chest, "When did you get here?"

"Before you", She answered with a shrug, a playful smile spreading across her lips.

His eyes refused to leave her face, "Well then it's just-"

"Let's get this show on the road", Abraham boomed, stalking towards them, "Morning ninja lady. Rick"

"Hey", She chimed as she turned back into the vehicle.

Rick realised he would have to behave himself in front of the others, but it wasn't easy.

He had noticed that Michonne was a morning person, with more energy than the rest of them, himself included. She sat at the table in the RV, her katana propped up beside her, with Jesus sat in front of her. The two of them wasted no time engaging in conversation, leading Rick to wonder what they could be possibly be discussing that made them both so animated.

"Ezekiel will be over the moon to see her"

Rick almost frowned as he glanced at Maggie, "Yeah"

"He's not that bad you know. A little… loud but, he's like the rest of us", the Brunette remarked quietly.

"He's annoying", He deadpanned, looking towards the front of the vehicle.

"He probably thinks you're annoying too"

"Let him. I want to keep this whole thang short and sweet, we get in, we trade, we leave"

"He's gonna want to catch up with the ninja lady over there", Maggie giggled.

The frown appeared on his face as he muttered, "I bet he will"

Rick had forgotten about the other leader, and his apparent interest in Michonne. His good mood slowly began to sour when he thought about it, and the fact that he may witness some degree of flirting from Ezekiel, bothered him greatly.

"You alright there?"

Maggie's voice snapped him out of his thoughts, "Yeah, just thinking-"

"Hey Rick! Up here!", Abraham called from the driver seat.

Rick places himself at the front of the RV, peering out the windshield to see what caught Abraham's attention, and it quickly became apparent. The street was covered in blood, with abandoned burnt out vehicles on either side of the road, still burning as they drove pass. Rick's eyes darted all over the place as he tried to figure out what had happened there.

"No bodies", Michonne's voice nearly scared him as she appeared beside him.

"Unless they all turned", Abraham suggested, still looking out the windshield.

"With that much blood? They must of lost limbs… and if that was the case then there would be a trail leading somewhere, not just one big pool"

Rick thought about it as he looked out the driver window, "She's right"

"We should probably keep our eyes peeled for the rest of the journey", She spun on her heel and walked back down the vehicle.

He nodded, "Yeah. We'll do that"

Abraham glanced over his shoulder at Rick, with one of his eyebrows raised, "...Alright then"

By the time they reached the Kingdom, they hadn't seen anything else, and Rick wasn't sure if that was a good thing. The school building where the Kingdom was settled was still standing and undisrupted, which was a relief to them all.

"You think he knows about what happened back there?", Jesus quizzed as they prepared to leave the vehicle.

"We'll have to ask. Could be the same people that torched that town you told us about", Rick answered, adjusting his gun belt.

"Hopefully. Rather it be one group than two"

"Good point".

Once they reached beyond the gates, the group wasted no time unloading their inventory for their Kingdom, while Rick, Jesus, Michonne and Maggie went into the building to find Ezekiel. The halls weren't that busy with residents, as it was still early in the day, though the people they did see greeted them with warm smiles as they made their way to the man's office.

"Well good morning!", Ezekiel boomed when he caught sight of them all, "Glad you could make it!"

Rick inwardly groaned while the others said their hellos, "We need to talk"

"I forgot how serious you always were", the grey haired man chuckled, placing himself in front of Rick, "I have no problem with that, so how about we do it over lunch? I think we should use these trades as an opportunity to catch up with each other"

"That's a great idea", Maggie chirped, sending Rick as teasing smile.

"How about next time? We wanna go check out a town that Jesus told us about", Rick rebuffed as politely as he could.

"Yeah, they were attacked, we don't know by who", Jesus informed from beside him.

Ezekiel sighed as he shook his head, "We've seen it too. And another attack not far from here on the-"

"Street. We saw coming up here. Any idea who?"

"No. We haven't had any problems with anyone"

Rick's eyes roamed past the man, "We'll find out then"

"Does Dwight know of this?", Ezekiel directed his attentions to Michonne.

"Not that I'm aware of. But I plan to head over to the Sanctuary soon, so I'll let him know", She announced, her hands on her hips.

"And how are things with Negan? I imagine you're keeping him in line?"

"It's what I do best"

Ezekiel grinned at her, "I me never thought I'd be jealous of that man-"

"Anyway", Rick interrupted rudely, "Why don't we go check on everythan' outside"

"Good idea", Jesus wasted no time turning back towards the door.

"Of course!", Ezekiel clapped his hands together in agreement, "We've been able to be a little more generous since we just traded with the Sanctuary"

"We appreciate that", Maggie allowed Michonne to walk out the office door before her, and Rick slipped passed her too, as he didn't want to have to hang behind to talk to Ezekiel.

"You were quick to turn down that lunch offer", Michonne snickered under heavy breath when Rick caught up with her.

"Did you wanna stay?", the question left his lips before he could consider if he wanted her reply.

"My love for food would dictate that answer"

He breathed a sigh of relief, "Good."

She glanced at him from the corner of her eye, "You thought something else would make me want to stay?"

He shook his head as if he never thought such a thing.

A little chortle left her, "Did you forget where you were last night?"

"Not at all."

"Well neither did I, so you don't have anything to worry about"

He bit his lip as he looked at her, wishing they could have a moment alone so he could greet her the way he truly wanted to, "I'm glad to hear that"

She flashed him a smile that he was growing obsessed with, "Eyes front"

He stopped leering at when they arrived at the front of the building, and the kingdom residents were loading items onto the RV. Rick did notice they were giving his community considerably more than they gave them, and he made a mental note to thank Ezekiel, when his gaze wasn't glued to Michonne.

"Ezekiel!"

Everyone's attention turned to the three men who stormed towards the fence, bleeding heavily from unseen wounds. Rick reached for his gun, and as did others around him as they went to meet the injured.

"A group, they stopped us on our way back here", one man panted, his shirt drenched in blood, "They killed the others, and the horses... shooting at us"

Ezekiel's eyes roamed them, "How far?"

"We probably just ran eight miles", the other breathed, holding his side, "She said she's coming for us, if we don't stay on our territory"

"She? Who is she?"

"We didn't get a name… she just told us to stay away"

Rick looked past the three men, scanning the horizon "Get them inside!"

Other residents came to the men's aids, while Ezekiel seemed to be frozen in shock. Jesus stood beside him, "This is some kind of turf war?"

"Sounds like it", Michonne sheathed her sword.

"You need to find out where they were when they were attacked, and pin point the other two attacks on a map or somethan', then we can work out where they are", Rick ordered.

"Are we going after them?", Glenn quizzed, looking to Rick.

Michonne shook her head, "That wouldn't be wise. We don't have a clue what we're up against, and how close we are to them either. They could have ten people to every one of us, and we already know they're hostile"

Rick nodded in agreement, "She's right. We don't even know who we're looking out for yet"

"A woman apparently", Ezekiel finally spoke, looking beyond the fence, "We'll have to talk to them"

"How many people were out there?"

The grey haired man frowned, "I think eight in total went out"

"She killed five of them… let two live… that's a warning", Daryl rasped as fidgeted with his crossbow.

"Three men came back?"

"That one in the middle ain't gonna make it, he was bleeding out from his whole stomach"

Ezekiel shifted uneasily before turning back to the building, "Right."

Rick thought over their predicament with the unknown group. He could already tell the Ezekiel was unsure of what to do next, which didn't leave him feeling too comfortable himself.

"Once we get a map of the area they're trying to claim, then we can figure out what to do next", Michonne insisted, stepping beside him, "There's nothing we can do until then"

He looked down at her, his racing mind starting to calm, "Yeah. Alright"

He had always known Michonne could be a more than capable leader, but having her beside him to help make decisions on the spot was a great help. She offered advice from a logical and rational point of view, and he trusted her perception, as it gave him confidence in his own.

They arrived back at Alexandria in the late afternoon, after staying to discuss all possible outcomes with Ezekiel. It was more to put the man's mind at ease than anyone else's.

"Everythan ' alright here?", Rick queried as he strolled past Tyreese at the front gates.

"No problems at all", the man informed, closing the large metal structure.

Rick slowed when he saw Michonne step out the RV, before it went on to the pantry, "You heading home?"

She slowly nodded, "Yep. I'm sure your son was bored without me to entertain him"

He smirked, "I can't disagree with that"

The sun rays lit up her eyes, causing them to glow in a delicious honey tone, under her dark lashes. Rick no longer cared that they were planted in full view of everyone, he wanted that image of her imbedded in his memory. He didn't think it was fair that he could find himself completely at her mercy, while she seemed perfectly capable of functioning around him, though he didn't rule out the possibility that it was all just an act, and that she was just a drawn to him.

"Uh, so…", She bit her lip as she dropped her gaze, and it was another of her many mannerisms that he found endearing.

"I could come by when he's done with you?", He offered, his eyes roaming all over her face.

She shook her head as a little chuckle left her, "You're not sick of me yet?"

"I'd be lying if I said I was"

"Well, then you're more than welcome to come over", She spun on her heel and walked away from him, and he would have watched her until she disappeared up the street, if he didn't sense someone beside him.

Sasha stared at his head with narrowed eyes and a hint of a smile as she crossed her arms.

Rick cleared his throat, "What's wrong?"

She shook her head, "Oh, nothing at all"

"Good, go home, get some rest"

"I should tell _you_ to do the same, huh?"

He froze on the spot, while she snickered as she stepped past him. Of all the people to have caught him leering at Michonne, he wished it wasn't Sasha, as she would be one of the very few that were more than happy to tease him about it.

He stalked up the street to his home, hoping to have the remainder of his evening to do as he wished, until he saw Jessie sat on his porch steps, looking directly at him.

"How can I help you, Jessie?", He asked tiredly when he was close enough.

"Hey, I just wanted to talk to you about a few things… if you weren't busy or anything? I saw the RV pull up so I thought I'd wait for you here", the women explained as she stood up.

"Go on."

"Well firstly, uh, the last time we spoke, I was a little out of order-"

"Not to me, but yeah, I get it. Water under the bridge. Go on?", He hurried, though kept his tone polite.

She hesitated as she tried to catch up, "Uh, okay, well secondly, I was wondering if I could go along with the next outing?"

"No.", He didn't allow any dust to settle on the request.

Jessie's shoulders fell, "Rick, I know you think that I'm incapable of helping out around here but I've been-"

"It's not that at all. The next time we go out is to go check out another group, which could potentially be ten times more dangerous than just the usual 'outing', and I'd rather take the people suited for the job. That's why you can't come"

Her dark brows furrowed, "Really? Another group?"

"Yeah", He sighed, shifting from foot to foot.

The blonde nodded, "Okay. Fine, I understand. But after that?"

"After that, I'll think about it", He inched past her and began stomping up the stairs.

"Thanks!"

He stepped into his home and breathed a sigh of relief, "Carl?!"

"Yeah?", the teenager answered from the living room.

Rick followed his voice, and found his laying across the chair reading a comic book, while Judith played with a set of cups on the floor beside him, "Y'all alright?"

"Yeah. We're good. How was it?"

He groaned as he sat in the vacant couch, "Some of Ezekiel's people got attacked out on the road, and they killed six of them. A couple horses too. "

Carl dropped his book to his chest to look at his father, "Same people Jesus told you about?"

"Maybe… we're not sure"

"What's the plan?"

"Figured out where they are… scope them out for a while"

The teen nodded as he looked down at Judith, "Okay"

"Nothing happened here, right?"

"Nah… I mean, I helped guard Negan for a little while…"

Rick's eyebrows sprung up, "Excuse me? Why?"

"Eugene needed the bathroom, and obviously two people have to watch him and I was walking by so I did it", the teen shrugged.

"Did he say anythan' to you?"

"He asked where Michonne was... that's it"

Rick pulled his reaction back, "Alright. Listen, I don't want you down there ever again, you understand me?"

The teen nodded, "I know"

"The man's always looking for an opportunity to get out of there, even when it doesn't seem like it, and I don't want him to-"

"I _know_ , dad. I'll never go down there again"

He relaxed a fraction, sitting back on the couch, "Good".

The teen sat up to look at him, "...But I don't get why she still goes down there?"

Rick raised an eyebrow at his son, attempting to come across as fair, though he often asked himself that question, "Because they're friends. That's why"

"I get that but, he tried to break out and she had to stop him… that's the second time she's had to do that, so won't he be mad? He looked mad today…"

He wished his son wasn't so intuitive, "That's somethan' they're gonna have to figure out themselves. It's easy to become attached to someone in a time like this, especially when they've helped you as much as they've helped each other"

The teenager seemed to absorb his words, "I guess you're right"

"I am", Rick smiled when his daughter saturated herself at his feet, "You can go over there and see her if you want. She should be home now"

"I was actually going to go hang out with Enid… Carol said she'd watch Judith for a little while"

Rick's brow furrowed at him as he scooped the toddler up, "Oh?"

Carl rolled his eyes, "We were going to see what Eugene doing. You know he's trying to make bullets?"

"Yeah. I'll be amazed if he does", He gave his daughter and exaggerated smile as he set her down on his lap, "Go on out then, don't keep your friend waiting… and I might be out later, gonna take a shift on one of the watchtowers"

"Alright."

He didn't necessarily want to lie to his son about his whereabouts, but he didn't want him to get the wrong impression either. His pairing with Jessie put a strain on their relationship, and he was hell bent on keeping things positive with the teen. While it was an added bonus that Carl and Michonne got along well, he still wanted to wait to bring their new situation up, as it was still very new.


	20. Chapter 20

**Chapter 20:**

"Does your shoulder still hurt?"

"A little… but I'll live"

Michonne ran her hands back and forth through Rick's slightly damp hair, gently massaging his scalp with her fingertips. Every little movement she made would cause the gentle scent of from his coconut shampoo to waft through the air. His arms were wrapped firmly around her waist, and his head rested between her bare breasts, as their legs intertwined, laying comfortably in her bed.

"So… Carl?"

He hummed a response, "What about him?"

"...Have you considered him in all this? How he'd feel?"

He gave a little nod, "I have, and I think I need to tread carefully with that… I don't want him to get the wrong idea"

She frowned, rolling her gaze from the ceiling to the top of his head, "The wrong idea?"

"Yeah…", He lifted his head to look at her, "I kind of got involved with someone here when we first came… and it didn't turn out well"

She narrowed her eyes as she tried to figure out who it could be, "...The blonde?"

He gave a small, single nod, "Yeah"

"I could see that…"

"Well, I'm trying to be a little more considerate this time around, and I don't want him to think that this is somethan' I'm taking lightly. Especially since the two of you have your own little club going"

She snickered at him, "Jealous?"

He snorted at her, "Of course I am… you know you could come by the house right? If you wanted to? I think he'd like that"

She tried to keep her expression neutral, "I'm not against the idea… it's just I haven't really been around any... tiny people... in a while"

He squinted at her for a second, before realising what it was she meant, "Is that somethan' you're trying to avoid?"

"Not actively", her eyes sailed off behind him, "Just haven't had to be around one"

He pursed his lips as he studied her, trying to read her, "It's that somethan' you wanna try out?"

She smirked as her gaze found his again, "Try out? Like a trial period?"

"You know what I mean… you can just start off small… like being in the same room as her for a while?"

She found his efforts to help her combat her fear of infants endearing, though the subject still brought pressure on her chest, "I'll have to give that a try one day"

"When you're ready just let me know"

"I will", She span her finger around a rogue curl at the back of his head as she sighed.

"...So you wanna go up to the Sanctuary soon?"

"Yeah. I asked Daryl if we could head in that direction… I need to see how Dwight's doing"

"Yeah? When do you plan on doing that, then?"

"Next couple days?... I want to speak to Negan before I go"

He tensed against her as his voice lowered, "Are you worried about how that will go?"

"No. I just need to get it over with…"

He nodded slowly before laying his head back down on her, "Alright."

She knew what to expect from Negan to a degree. She knew the man could be vicious with his words on a daily basis, but even more so when he was angry, and having nothing else to do would enable him to stew in his fury.

The next day she made her way over to the basement after finishing a shift at the gates. She was more than happy to stand watch in the mornings, as that was her proffered time of the day, and she had noticed others didn't share the same sentiments, especially Rick. She found his tired expression to be quite adorable, and she would have loved the opportunity to see him first thing in the morning, with tousled hair and puffy eyes. She had to settle with his late evening visits for the time being.

Michonne shut the front door once Bruce was over the threshold before turning back to Negan's cell. She felt uncharacteristically nauseous as she prepared to see the man, but she was sure to wear a stoic expression regardless. She faced the chair towards the cell door and sat down, watching him as he watched her from his crouched position, finished with his workout.

"Ah, I thought I heard the devil's whisper", Negan snickered, one corner of his mouth curling upwards, "You took your sweet time coming back here, didn't you?"

"I was busy", She wanted to keep her replies short, as she knew him well enough to know that he would only half listen in his rage.

"Oh, I bet you were. I know all about you now. So what, you scared to come in here today?"

She rolled her eyes, "Left the key at home"

"Isn't that convenient?"

"I guess it is"

He slowly stood up straight, and strolled towards the bars, "Do you like looking at me like this? Do you _like_ seeing me like this 'Chonne?"

"You're dangerous. You have to be in there"

He nodded as if he were being understanding, "I have to ask, did your little piece of rat shit boyfriend tell you that?"

She crossed her arms over her chest as she looked up at him from her seat, making no attempt to answer him.

"So what? Were you kissing on his neck or something? Huh? Stroking that fucking grey bush on his face?"

Still, she said nothing, continuing to blink at him.

His tipped his head forward, resting it against the steel, "Have you been fucking around with him since the beginning of all this? Were you sucking on his neck back then to?"

She sighed as she let her gaze roam the wall.

"Come on, tell me. Tell me how long you've been a fucking weasel for?"

She raised an eyebrow at him, knowing he was just warming up.

"Now I've got your attention", He sniggered, "Oh, how you've changed. You used to be a loyal woman. You knew where you stood and no one could tell you different… and now look? Look at you? Do you even know where you stand? Do you know what you even stand for?"

"I've never forgotten where or what I stand for-"

"Bullshit!", He roared, his eyes bulging as he glared at her, "You sit there and you say that, but when push comes to shove, it's me you're against! Me! After all I did for you, this is the thanks I get?! You cut off my hand and put me in here and tell me it's me that's dangerous?! You put me in a position to have to fight you, when I have never laid a fucking finger on you before! And even then I still held back! Just so you can go fuck the that son of a bitch farmer in peace?!"

"You know that's not the reason I put you in there-"

He crouched down again so he could look her in the eye, "You're dangerous. You know why? Because you're a fucking wolf in sheep's clothing. You are 'Chonne. You're running around with those fuckwits as if you're one of them, but the fact of the matter is, look what you've done to me? I'm meant to be your partner, but look at where I am at right now? And this is because of you! How can they trust you, when you so readily turned against me? You're weasel for that 'Chonne"

She glowered, "Are you done?"

"I can almost smell him off you", He tilted his head at her, "You still haven't told me when all that started? When did you start fucking the enemy, huh? When did you decide to become the kind of treacherous dog, I hate?"

"I am not going to talk about him with you", she bit out, "So drop it"

Negan's face pinched, as he stood up again, "Well listen to you! Protecting that shitty little cowboy now? Aw!...You make me fucking _sick_! You really fucking do, do you know that? Just looking at you right now, it makes my ass itch to know that I trusted you at one point. I almost forgave you, too. But you don't deserve any of that anymore. You're disloyal. You're a termite. You're weak. I could go on for days-"

"I won't come back here if you don't calm down-"

"You think I want you to come here again?! I'd rather have a bunch of flea infested rats come down here! But then that would be no different to you now would it?", His eyes flashed with anger as he rested his arms through the bars, "I made you. I did. I made you. You were crying on the side of the Goddamn road when I found you. Walking around with your son, hog tied, so he wouldn't nibble on your ass. You were barely even a person when I got there. I didn't even know which one of you was a corpse. I fought for you. I fucking protected you. I made sure no one laid a finger on you. I fed you! I cleaned you! I saved your fucking life! I made you! You'd have been in the bottom of a corpse's stomach if it wasn't for me! And I didn't have to do any of that, but I did, I did because I pitied you. You were worthless and I gave your life. Look how you turned on me? Look how you turned on the only person that even bothered to give you the time of day? You think any of those people would have done that? You think your little fucktard boyfriend would have done all that for you? Huh? He probably would have left you. They all probably would have left you, but still you side with them now… you're pathetic, you're disgusting, and I should have left you to wallow in your own self-pity"

She decided she had heard enough, as his venomous words had pierced her like no other, so she slowly rose from her seat, "Goodbye Negan-"

Michonne was unaware of what happened, until she felt it difficult to breath. Negan's large hand gripped her throat through the bars, and he watched her with dark eyes as she dug her nails into his arms.

"Look at what you did to us", He growled through gritted teeth, "You did this. You put us here. You pushed me here, and now you have to see how dangerous I really am"

"Get- off!", She choked out, resting one of her feet against the bars and pushing her upper body away from him.

"You think I'm gonna let that piece of dog shit have you? Huh?", He tilted his head as he watched her struggle for air, "I'd break you first. I'd break you with my bare hand before I'd let that happen"

She brought her other foot up against the bars and pushed away with all her might, and the man couldn't hold on to her anymore. His nails tore the skin of her neck as she dropped to the floor, coughing as she was allowed to breath freely. She was beside herself with pure shock as she looked back up at him.

His chest heaved up and down, his dark eyes rolling away from her, "Get out! Now!"

She watched him as she found her footing, stunned by his attack, "That's why you're in there!"

She flung open the front door to the basement and stormed out, ignoring the guards calls for her. She marched up the steps and went straight to her home, ignoring the stinging pain that radiated from her neck.

As soon as she held her katana in her hand, she stomped back outside, heading to the gates. Residents in the streets eyed her sceptically but none of them attempted to stop her, with most giving her a wide berth to pass.

"What's going on-"

"Let me out", She demanded, not bothering to make eye contact with Rosita.

"Uh, what for-"

Michonne ignored her, no longer in the mood to speak, and instead she threw her sword between the space in the bars, and began to climb up.

"Hey! What the hell are you doing?!", Rosita quizzed with wide, alarmed eyes, "Where are you going?!"

She continued to ignore her, throwing her leg over the top of the gate and holding on to the bars as she slid to the ground. She reached down and snatched her sword from the concrete, then continue to march down the street.

All she wanted to do was release the anger she felt with some exercise, the kind of exercise that cleared her mind, and to her luck, there were three walkers dotted in the street. She would have preferred a herd, but she had to take what she could get. She swung her blade purposefully, with more momentum than necessary, but it had a soothing effect on her. It was how she found her release, since gone were the days she could just take a stroll around the block.

The three walkers she killed helped to some degree, but not enough. Negan's words still rung out in her head, clear as a bell. She could still see the look in his eyes as he tried to take her life from her, and she could liken it to the sort of thing nightmares were made of.

A familiar chorus of low growls came from in the trees, and she stopped dead in her tracks. She could see the silhouettes of several walkers making their way towards her and she paced herself, getting a firm grip on her handle with both hands.

Seven in total emerged and she stepped back to allow herself some space. The first one was easy, as it was the most decayed of the bunch, so her blade passed through his head with ease. She all but danced around them, taking out one at a time, her fury seeping away with every move she made. If it wasn't for the bullet that took out the last walker before her sword could, she would have been proud of herself.

Carl lowered his gun, with his brow furrowed beneath his hat. She immediately calmed, realising that he was outside the walls with her, and not liking that fact at all.

"Come on", She muttered, resting her hand on his shoulder to get him to walk.

"No, what happened?", He didn't move.

"Nothing, I just needed some fresh air-"

"What happened to your neck? You're bleeding? Did one of them get you?!-"

"No!", She hissed, "It was an accident, now come on, I'll tell you about it once we're back inside, okay?"

His eyes seemed to dart all over her face as if he were searching for the truth, "Alright. Fine."

She almost frog marched him back to the gates, where to her dismay, Rick was stood, along with Daryl, Rosita, Sasha and Abraham. She didn't want to have to explain herself, especially in front of an audience, but the look on Rick's face told her that she wouldn't get out of this so easily.

"You, home, now", He barked at Carl, before turning to Michonne, "And you, come with me"

The defiant side of her was tempted to stay on the other side of the gate, but she still followed him as he stalked up the street. To say she felt like a naughty child, would have been an understatement. She realised he was leading her to her home, and she felt less like a child and more like a teenager about to be put on punishment. She hoped that wasn't the case, as she didn't take any kind of reprimand well.

He near enough ripped her front door off its hinges when he opened it, and she trudged in behind him, stopping in the hallway as he slammed it and began to pace like a caged animal, "What was that?"

"I needed some air", She huffed, resting one hand on her hip.

"You needed some air? Are we running out of that in here?", He mocked, looking her dead in the eye.

"I went out. Killed a few walkers. That's it"

"You climbed over the gate to kill a few walkers?"

"I needed to cool off"

"You needed to cool off? So you hopped the fence to kill a few walkers?", the more he repeated it, the more ridiculous it sounded.

"Just like that"

His gaze stumbled upon her scratches, and he stopped pacing, "Did that happen outside?"

"No", She shook her head, "It was an accident"

He tilted his head in an eerily slow way, "How?"

"Look, I'm sorry about Carl, I didn't know he would come out-"

"What. Happened?", He bit out. His eyes appeared cloudy as he leered at her, waiting for her to explain her injury. It didn't take long for him to figure out who could have possibly inflicted them, and it was evident in the blank expression he soon wore, "Did he- did he do that to you? Did Negan do that?"

She grabbed hold of his arm, "I can look after myself-"

He snatched his arm away from her, and stepped towards the door.

"Rick! No! We had a deal! Don't go back-"

"I told you, when you started living here, that if he hurts anyone, including you, then he's dead. I let you take full control over anythan' to do with him to minimise the chances of that happening, but I've still had to let a lot of thangs slide because of you! I let what he did to Tyreese slide, because of you! I let him live after breaking out, because of you! But if you can't handle him anymore then it's time I take over!"

"No!"

"What did he do? Did he grab you? We're you in there with him?!", He quizzed angrily.

"No!", She yelled back, rage pulsing through her all over again, "He didn't do anything worse than he did before!"

He retrieved his gun from his belt as his other hand grabbed the door handle, and Michonne felt she had no choice but to stop him.

He froze when he felt the cool steel of her blade by his neck, his head tipping a fraction to peak at it. He shoved the door closed before turning to face her with a dark expression.

She didn't change her stance, her blade still shadowed him as she breathed, "Don't do this"


	21. Chapter 21

Chapter 21:

Rick was used to having many different types of weapons aimed in his direction, and he rarely took offence to it in recent months, but having Michonne's blade by his neck for a third time, under delicate circumstances, annoyed him greatly. While her stance told him that she meant business, something in her eyes told him otherwise.

His cloudy eyes didn't leave hers, "Are we going there again? Is that what's happening right now?"

"I need you to stop", her tone was low, her grip on the handle, tight, "I want you to calm down and listen to me-"

"I've listened to you and I know what you're going to say-"

"No, you don't!"

"I told you, I've let one too many thangs slide when it comes to him, and I'm not letting that happen again", He repeated firmly.

"I know what you told me, and I'm angry that we even need to go here again, but I can't let you go over there-"

"You're still protecting him? Even now? Even after what he did that to you, you're still protecting him?", Rick's brows knitted together as he stepped closer to her, risking a nasty cut from her blade, "Have you even seen your neck?"

"You don't understand-"

"He killed your son for you, he helped you out of a dark place, I get all that, but the man showed just you how much you really mean to him-"

"He was angry!-"

"So that makes it alright? You think he deserves a free pass from you because he was mad?!"

"He was angry because of what you told him! That wasn't your place to tell him that! I should have been the one to tell him when I was ready-"

"And I apologised for that! I didn't keep my mouth shut and let you go in there, unaware of what he knew, I came right out and told you, I admitted that I shouldn't have said anythan'! But that doesn't give him the right to hurt you!"

She turned took a small step back, "I will deal with him"

Rick shook his head, as he stuck out his hand to here, "No. No, you won't. Not anymore. Where's the key?"

"What?", She frowned, her eyes moving like a pinball all over his face while she finally lowered her sword.

"You heard me. I don't want you going over there anymore, and I want the key back", His tone was at its sharpest as his temper began to boil over, "Now."

"You can't do that! You can't tell me who I can and can't see-"

"Where are you right now, Michonne? Are you in the Sanctuary or are you in Alexandria? Do you remember who I am here?"

Her chest rose and fell quicker, "That is not fair."

"I've been more than fair with you!", He roared, throwing a hand in the air, "I have let him live when I shouldn't have, I've let him stay here, I've let you look after him- You think I'm going to continue to let him have control of you from inside that cell?!"

"He does not have control of me!"

"After everything he's done", His voice dropped to a throaty growl, "You're seriously trying to protect him? And I know you don't agree with anything he's said or done, so I don't know what it is that you're holding on to. Do you think he'll change? Is that what you're waiting for? Do you see even a shred of the man that you knew in there anymore?"

Her eyes glistened, and tears threatened to fall as she choked out, "Yes. I do"

Rick shook his head, "I don't believe that at all-"

"I do! You won't see it, no one else out there will see it, and even people that have been with us the longest won't see it, but I do", She wiped a tear from her cheek roughly, "He is having a tough time right now-"

"So _what?!",_ His face contorted with disgust.

"He needs time! He's barely even been in there a month! You should know this! You should know that change doesn't happen overnight! Especially with someone as far gone as he was! And it's my fault that he's like that because I left him to handle things, I left him to learn how to be a leader and I left him when he's needed me. He's didn't start out like this, and he won't end like this either-"

"Plenty of leaders have made it this far without doing even half the things that he's done-"

"So you've always been on the straight and narrow? You're never done anything questionable to protect the people around you? To protect everyone from the 'bad people' out their?-"

"Who was he protecting when he attacked Tyreese? Huh?"

"He shouldn't of touched Tyreese, I know that, but at the same time he had ample amount of time to kill him. He could have if he really wanted to but he didn't! And I've seen that man make a decision to kill in the blink of an eye!"

"And what about you then?", He challenged, narrowing his eyes at her, "What was he doing when he did whatever he did to your neck? He grabbed you, right? Did he try to choke you?"

She exhaled through her nose, "That was him hitting rock bottom"

He rolled his eyes shut as he shook his head, "You are just full of excuses for him-"

"They are not excuses! If I truly believed that there was no hope for him at all, then I would have killed him a long time ago! No one would have had to ask me to do a thing because I would have made that decision myself!"

"Well you're done making decisions now", He sniffed as he straightened up, "The key. _Now"_

While her positioning remained still, he noticed a little tremble in her jaw, "Rick-"

"Michonne, give me the key now", He breathed through gritted teeth.

"Just don't-"

"You don't get to decide what does and doesn't happen to him anymore, and I don't want you anywhere near there again, and I mean that, so give me the key"

Despite their heated argument, it still pained him to see her so stressed. She snapped her eyes shut as she dropped her sword to the floor, turning away from him.

"Michonne."

She reached in her back pocket, and fished out the singular key and slapping it in the palm of his hand. She spun around and stalked up the stairs without another glance or another word.

Rick stayed rooted in the same place until he heard a door slam close, and he finally left her home.

To say he was angry would be an understatement, and despite all that he felt instinctively, he found himself conflicted. On the one hand, he had the perfect reason to kill Negan before him, and he had wanted to for so long that the opportunity felt like a gift to him. The fact that this man could turn on Michonne after all she had done to keep him alive only told Rick how selfish the man was, and how unappreciated he was of her. He was sure if he were to offer all the people around him, and from neighbouring communities the chance to kill Negan, the queue would be the longest he'd ever seen, and he would be sure to be at the front.

On the other hand however, he couldn't help but consider Michonne in his decision making process. He wouldn't understand her loyalty to the man, and he almost thought her as foolish for still choosing to stand beside the man, but to see how much she cared for her friend left Rick torn.

"Carl?!", Rick yelled as he marched into his home, stopping near the kitchen to listen for his son.

"I'm here", The teenager stepped out of the living room, holding a babbling Judith in his arms.

"Where was she when you left?", Rick quizzed, moving closer to them both.

"I gave her to Gabriel to hold. I saw Michonne climbing over the gate and figured something was up…", The teenager explained with slightly frustrated tone, "I know I shouldn't have gone out-"

"Yeah, you shouldn't have", Rick issued, "She wasn't thinking straight so shouldn't have followed her out-"

"What was wrong with her?"

Rick softened when he noticed the concern surrounding his son, "She just needed to blow off some steam. That's all"

The teenager didn't seem to accept his response, but nodded for his father's sake, "Okay."

"Listen, I trust you. I think you're smarter than a lot of the adults in this place when it comes to dealing with thangs out there, but I need you to be a little bit more careful with stuff like that"

Carl nodded a second time, "I know, but Rosita was just standing there and I don't think she even knew what to do"

"Yeah… well we haven't had anyone climb the damn gate to get out before", Something about the way Carl's gaze quickly dropped to his sister made Rick squint at him, "Who?"

The teenager hesitated, his lips pressing together.

"Who?", Rick repeated firmly.

Carl shifted his stance, "If I tell you then you have to promise not to get mad?"

"Fine", He lied, "Who?"

"Enid. She goes out sometimes-"

He almost had to ask ' _Who_?' for a fourth time as the teenage girl slipped his mind, "What for?"

The boy shrugged, "She was outside for a long time too. I think she prefers it out there…"

Rick knew virtually nothing about the girl, besides the fact that she and Carl read comic books together, so if she had been sneaking out, he would have never known, "Right, where is she now?"

"You're not going to say anything are you?"

"We've everythan' we've got going on right now, the last thang we need is people sneaking out. We may not know much about this other group, but we do know their hostile, so unless she wants to come face to face with them by herself, I suggest you warn her that staying put is her best option"

"Yeah… I'll talk to her"

"Good… and you should probably wait a while before you go out looking for Michonne", He instructed, heading back towards the front door, "I mean it"

"I know", Carl called, bouncing Judith as he strolled back into the living room.

"There you are", Sasha sighed, stopping at the bottom of the porch steps as Rick closed the door of his home, "What happened?"

He shook his head, "She just needed to blow off some steam"

Sasha raised a questioning eyebrow, but still nodded as if she found the excuse reasonable, "Right… well I'm going up to the watch tower, a few walkers are building up over on the north wall-"

"How many is a few?", Rick paused on the steps to look at her.

"I don't know yet, Tobin came and told me about it because he couldn't find you."

His eyes darted back to the street, "Yeah. Alright. I'm gonna go handle somethan' quickly, then I'll come get you, we'll check it out"

"Alright. Got it"

He checked the barrel of his gun as his feet pounded the pavement, slapping it shut when he saw it was full. He approached the home that housed Negan and stomped down the stairs, ignoring Eugene, who was sat outside with a book.

"Go", He rasped to Bruce, stepping past him and placing himself in front of her cell door.

Bruce hopped up without a word, allowing Rick to glower in peace as he zeroed in on Negan. He was sat on the floor, his head and back against the wall, with his legs splayed in front of him. He looked at Rick with hooded, tired eyes, making no attempt to speak.

"Don't mind me", Rick swung the chair, that had been placed outside the cell, and brought it behind him, taking a seat, "I'm just deciding on whether to kill you or not"

Negan continued to stare at him.

"I mean, I want to kill you. I should, I know I should, for many reasons. I have a list of reasons, in fact. The one that's bothering me the most right now is what you did to her. That's somethan'… somethan' I'm struggling with", He gently swung his weapon in his hand, "You know I've actually thought for quite some time now, that you don't deserve her? And I guess I was right. You really don't… It doesn't matter what you did for her… she shouldn't have to put up with you"

The prisoners lip twitched, but still he remained quiet.

Rick tilted his head at him as he sent his glare through the bars, "And do you wanna know what I actually think? Well I know you don't but, I'm gonna tell you anyway. I think you'd prefer it if I killed you. I think you'd welcome a quick, painless death, over sitting in here for the rest of your days. And as I said, I'd love to do the honours, but I hate you enough to wanna see the complete opposite happen. I wanna get you another way"

Negan blinked, his nostrils flaring.

"I've already figured out what your punishment will be. Actually, I figured it out when you broke out the last time, but now I'm in a position to put it into place, instead of killing you", Rick sat forward, resting his elbows on his knees, "It's her, ain't it? It all leads back to her. That's the only thing that really gets you going, huh?"

While Negan didn't move, Rick noticed that his chest moved quicker than it has been.

"So, Michonne won't be coming down here anymore, and I imagine you're probably thinking that that isn't much right now, but you need to come to terms with the fact that you might not see her for a very long time, so it's going to get pretty lonely...", Rick scratched his brow with his thumb, "I mean, it's not like anyone else was dying to come down here anyway, which is especially sad when you think about all the people you were surrounded by not that long ago..."

One corner of Negan's mouth curled ever so slightly, though he still leered at him.

Rick sat back with a sigh, "That's gonna be your punishment, and I can't wait to watch it sink in, because it will, really soon. You'll be stuck in here, while she's out there, helping us. Helping me. I mean, she's already done so much but the fact is, she's a part of this community now, and we value her, I definitely do. I couldn't help but notice how she's changed since she's been around everyone else but you... I never saw her smile when she was with you, and she hardly ever spoke, but it's like she's thriving now she's here. She's talking to people, and laughing… her laugh is somethan' sweet, ain't it? Especially when she finds somethan' really funny… or when she's being tickled…"

Rick has to stop himself, as he had sworn not to use his personal relationship with Michonne to get to Negan, but seeing the man's jaw clench as he spoke, told him he had said enough.

"...The more time she spends around people like her, the sooner she'll realise what you are."

Negan snorted as he rolled his eyes, muttering sarcastically, "Yeah yeah"

"You have somethan' to say now? You've been awfully quiet? What happened? Have you realised that you screwed up? You made the wrong move a while ago, didn't you? Has it sunk in that quickly? That's amazing if it has", Rick stood up with a huff, giving the man one final look, "I don't think you'll be hard to train at all"

His one sided conversation with Negan only left feeling slightly satisfied, as he was still bothered by his argument with Michonne. He was so excited to see his relationship with her develop further, but he was afraid that Negan had managed to put things on hold between them. He had originally believed that if he showed that he respected their friendship, then it wouldn't be that much of a nuisance to him, but he was beginning to think he was wrong.

"All done? Ready to go?", Sasha queried as he approached her at the gates, stood beside Abraham.

"Yeah", Rick huffed, his eyes scanning the area, "Did you have any problems taking them out?"

"Nah, but I was just telling Abraham that they looked weird from what I can see up there"

"Weird?"

"Yeah, like they didn't have any skin or something"

Rick looked at her strangely as he shifted his stance, "That's not really anythan' new-"

"That's what I said. I've seen some missing half their damn bodies before", Abraham added with a snort.

"Well let's go check it out and you can see for yourself. I know what I'm talking about", Sasha rolled her eyes as she turned towards the gate.

Rick followed behind the two of them, forcing himself to concentrate on the task at hand, and hoping Sasha's latest discovery wasn't part of the ever increasing problem that lingered in the town's future. He still held some confidence at the thought of having to go to war with another group, especially with the alliance of the other communities, he hated not knowing what he was up against.

"See. Told you".

Rick and Abraham looked down at the bodies scattered in front of them, which were obviously missing the skin on their heads. The larger man frowned, "They were either killed, then skinned, or skinned after they turned... either way, it's fucking creepy"

"Creepy seems to be the pattern here...", Rick groaned as he raked his fingers through his hair, "Just what we need"

"We need to find these fuckers real soon. Their closing in on our asses"

"We will".


	22. Chapter 22

**Chapter 22:**

Michonne woke with a headache, and laid in bed for most of the morning, until the throbbing pain subsided.

She couldn't explain the combination of emotions she felt, all she knew was that it could be summed up to defeat. She had done everything in her power to keep the peace and protect her friend, but she felt as if it was all for nothing. Rick wanted to kill Negan, and she knew it was only a matter of time before her friend did something to give him the opportunity, despite her hopes.

Her relationship with Rick was another thing that came into question after the previous night's events. She hated having to argue with him, and she wished he wasn't so hard headed, although she couldn't deny he had been complacent when it came to their set up with Negan. Rick was quite obviously at the end of his tether, but for him to use his status as leader against her wasn't a nice feeling at all.

It was early in the afternoon when she heard a light tapping at her front door, and she would have expected it to be Carl, as Rick was much more heavy handed, but to her surprise, it was a resident she was unfamiliar with.

"I'm Carol", The grey haired woman smiled, holding out her hand.

"Michonne. Nice to meet you", Michonne shook her hand firmly, not entirely sure what to expect from the woman's visit.

"I bake, and I made some cookies", She held up the box of topple ware, "I usually hand them out when I can…"

Michonne took the box, "Wow, thanks"

"So how are you settling in here? I imagine it's a lot different than the Sanctuary?"

"It's nice. Everyone has been very welcoming…"

"That's great to hear. I imagine it's been strange…Living here, keeping an eye on your partner that's locked up..."

Michonne leaned against the door frame, "Something like that"

"I've actually been with Rick and the others since the beginning…", The woman sighed, crossing her arms over her chest, "I've seen that man go through a lot… we've lost a lot of people, and I've seen it all rip him apart, he was a shell of a man at one stage… the person he is today is a testimony to what's he's been through, because he's been up against some really, really bad people…"

Michonne watched Carol carefully as she spoke, feeling uncomfortable with the turn of the conversation, _"Right…"_

"Which is why I was surprised that he agreed to let Negan live… we never took chances like that before. We couldn't afford to, so to see how's he's allowed Negan to live and stay here… it's almost out of character"

Michonne rose an eyebrow at the woman, "People change."

"You and I both know that's not the case. Not with Rick, anyway. He's gotten this far because he doesn't take risks"

"I'm sorry, but can I ask what the point of this conversation is?", Michonne quizzed, keeping her tone light.

"I heard about what happened yesterday", Carol tilted her head at her, "And the time before that. Things aren't working out as you planned with Negan, are they? The man's a psychopath-"

"It's early days-"

"You have two very similar men on opposite ends of the spectrum here. The good and the bad… and you're right in the middle-"

"Excuse me?"

"I'm not sure about you and Negan, but from what I've been told, you two are very close. You've always stood by his side, you've protected him… I'm sure at one point he was a likeable man, but I'm also very sure that the only person that genuinely cares about him is you… he probably knows that…", Carol tilted her head in the other direction, "Then there's Rick. I've never completely known the ins and outs of his relationships, but I know that when it comes to matters of the heart… he's all in. I figured he'd taken some liking to you when he decided he trusted you after you'd only been here for three minutes-"

"Your point?", She almost bit the words out of her mouth.

"You need to pick a side, before it gets messier. You're jumping up and down with that sword of yours to protect Negan, using the fact that he cares about you, that he can care about anyone, to ignore the other fact that he's evil and dangerous, and if this was before the turn he would have had multiple death sentences for what he's done. You need to realise that if anyone else gets hurt while tending to him, then you'd have to shoulder that blame too. He's alive because Rick won't kill him and Rick won't kill him because of you… I don't know if you think you owe him something, but if you do, I think that debt has been paid in full."

Michonne bit back a growl, no longer impressed or interested with her first conversation with Carol, "Well thank you for stopping by with some cookies and your opinion. I think I'll just take the cookies"

She stepped back and closed the door with a huff, completely caught off guard with the topic. Her situation with Rick and Negan was constantly on her mind to begin with, and if other residents felt like they needed to stop by to drop off their views on that matter, she would have to start opening the door with her sword in hand.

The way the grey haired woman spoke also told Michonne that Rick hadn't killed Negan in the night, and that her friend was still alive, which brought her some relief. She was still very angry with him after all.

Being cooped up in the house all day was not part of her plan, and so she decided to venture out of her home after stewing in annoyance.

The residents were scattered throughout the streets, going about their day with weapons in hand. She understood the need for everyone to be prepared for the unexpected, and it was something she agreed with Rick on, especially as they had a potential threat lurking in the distance.

She found herself stopping a few homes away from the home that housed Negan. It was unbeknownst to her why her legs seized to move all of a sudden, although she didn't completely dismiss the possibility that it had something to do with Rick's warning. She honestly felt like a naughty child trying not to make the same mistake twice, so she lifted her head up high and continued her stroll.

"Hey!"

Her foot hovered in the air for a second when she heard Rick's bark. She spun around to see him stomping towards her, "Yes?"

"What are you doing?", He asked in a stern tone when he was close enough.

"I'm going for a walk", She frowned, "Can I not do that now? Am I on house arrest too?"

"I told you, I don't want you near here"

"You can't ban me from the street, Rick. I wasn't going to try to sneak down there and see him-"

"Why'd you stop just then?", He tilted his head at her, "I saw you stop right there"

"...Because I just did", She answered vaguely.

He didn't budge.

She sighed as she crossed her arms, "Because I had a lot of my mind. That's all"

His eyes studied her closely, "Like what?"

"Are you going to try to use your title as leader to force me to tell you what's on my mind?"

His brows knitted together as his head reeled back an inch, "Is that what you think I'm doing here?"

She gave a little shrug of her shoulder, "I don't know, you tell me?"

He clenched his jaw as he shifted his stance, "Look, I'm not asking because of him. I'm asking because of you"

"Well the lines are kind of blurry right now, don't you think?"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means that just yesterday you were talking to me as 'Rick, the leader' and not 'Rick, my-'", She stopped herself, feeling foolish for sounding so immature.

"Go on", He urged, stepping closer to her, but she raised her hand to stop him.

"We aren't behind closed doors, Rick", She reminded, quickly peering around them.

"I don't give a damn, I wanna hear what you was going to say-"

"I don't want to talk about his right now, not right here"

"When then?"

She exhaled through her nose as she looked past him, spotting Carl walking with his sister in his arms, "I don't know, just not now. Carl's coming"

"Fine", He breathed, moving back to see his son, and creating a friendlier distance between the two of them, "You two alright?"

"Hey", Carl greeted, "Yeah, we were just taking a walk"

Michonne forced a smile on her face as she prepared to behave naturally, "Great. So was I"

Rick glanced at her before holding his hands out for his daughter, "You two go on, I'm gonna go drop her Carol for a little while"

Carl handed over the toddler, "Where are you going?"

"Up in the tower, I need to check out some of the walkers around here"

"Walkers? Why?"

"...We just saw a few strange ones last night, wanna see which direction they're coming from-"

"You think it has something to do with that other group?", She probed, giving the toddler a little wave back from her father's arms.

He looked in her direction, but not directly at her, "Don't know yet, but I'm trying to find out"

"...Alright".

Rick began to walk off in the other direction, cooing at his daughter in the process. Michonne forced herself to look away from his back as Carl joined her in her stroll.

"Bad day yesterday?", The teenager queried, shoving his hands in his jeans pockets.

"Yeah… just needed a timeout", She lied, squinting into the distance, "Thanks for coming out, but next time, don't. Please. I don't want you getting in trouble with your dad"

"He was actually pretty nice about it. I mean, he didn't yell or anything"

She snickered, "Good… Hey, I'm going to head out to the Sanctuary tomorrow and if Dwight hasn't cleared my room, I can bring back a few more books?"

"Yeah?... Can I come with you? Well, let me clear it with my dad first, but if he agrees, can I?"

She narrowed her eyes at him, "Only if you clear it with him"

"I will. Just you?"

"Daryl's coming with us. We wanted to check out a few places along the way"

"Cool. I actually wanted to see if I could get a few cups for Judith"

Michonne looked at him strangely, "Cups?"

"She loves cups… those big red ones… I don't know why but, she just does"

She frowned as she thought about it, but soon began to chuckle, "She's a natural born party girl, I guess"

It was Carl's turn to look at her strangely, "Because of a cup?"

"Oh… you were probably too young at the time. Everyone used to use those cups at parties and play games like, beer pong. I'll teach you when you're old enough-", she quickly stopped herself, "Don't tell your dad though"

The teenager chortled, "For the right price, my lips are sealed"

She released a little groan, "Fine. What?"

He tapped his chin with his finger, pretending to ponder, "How about your…. Black panther-"

"I knew you would say that!"

"I get it for a whole week"

"You can finish that in an hour! I know you can"

"I want to be able to read whenever I want for a whole week", the teen bargained.

Michonne feigned defeat, "Fine. A whole week"

"Yes", Carl grinned, while she rolled her eyes at him as she chuckled, glad to have the young boy there to brighten her mood.

The sound of rumbling metal caught their attention as the front gate opened, and Sasha and Abraham stepped out with knives in hand. A small group of walkers were heading towards them, and Michonne took her own dagger out, just in case. She and Carl watched them cut through the group easily, impaling the corpses in their rotting skulls, when Jessie appeared, running towards them with a machete in hand.

Her presence distracted Sasha, causing the walker in front of her to grab hold of her shoulders.

Abraham quickly stabbed the walker in his head, while Jessie struggled to remove her Machete from another's neck while it held her.

"Come on", Michonne nudged Carl, and the two of them sprinted over to the gate.

"Shit! Help!", Jessie cried, fighting to keep the Walker away from her. Carl got to her first, piercing the corpse in the back of its head.

Michonne would have preferred to have had her sword with her, but she would make do with the smaller weapon, grabbing hold of a reanimated woman by the neck and stabbing her in the side of the head.

"Get back inside!", Carl told Jessie, pulling her machete free.

"I'm okay now", The blonde panted, reaching for her weapon, but Carl held it away from her.

"No! You're going to get yourself hurt!"

A walker emerged behind Jessie, causing her to scream while Carl pushed her out the way, driving the machete through the walkers chin and out her head.

Abraham removed his knife from the last skull and turned to face them, "You heard the boy. Go. Now"

Jessie huffed as she shook her head, spinning on her heel and marching back inside the community.

Michonne put away her weapon, "Where are we putting them?"

"We need to load them up, drive 'em down the road and out the way", Sasha sighed as she rolled her shoulders, "I'll get the truck"

"Alright, let's do it".

Michonne wasn't sure why Jessie was determined to prove herself, but she did know that she didn't have any patience for stupidity. A small part of her wondered what her and Rick's relationship was like, as the two women were poor opposites, and she tried to imagine how he would have behaved towards Jessie. She soon decided not to think about it too much.

After piling the corpses on to the back of a pickup truck and driving down the street to dispose of them, they returned to Alexandria, where Rick opened the gates for them. She wasn't sure how he'd feel about Carl helping with the move, but he seemed fine with it when they exited the vehicle. She was going to go on with her day when Rick told her to meet him in the watchtower, stalking off before she had a chance to say anything else.

Michonne's discussion with Carol still played on her mind, especially knowing that the woman had sussed that Rick had taken a liking to her, so she wanted to act carefully, mainly for Carl's sake. The last thing she wanted was for the teenager to find out that something was going on between the two of them through gossip, so she waited exact five minutes before going up to the top of the tower to see Rick.

He had both hands at his sides, looking out the glassless window when she arrived, only turning to look at her when she leaned against the wall, "Are we going to talk about this now?"

She crossed her arms over her chest, "Go ahead"

He looked her from head to toe, "I want to know what you're thinking about everythan'..."

"You made your decision as a leader, and that's that-"

"You know what I mean", He grasped firmly.

"What else do you want me to say, Rick? I'm not going to beg for the key back to his cell-"

"That's _not_ what I'm talking about. I'm talking about you and me"

Her gaze dropped from his face, "...I don't know what to say about that…"

"What's that supposed to mean?", He tilted his head at her, taking the smallest step forward.

"It means, I don't know what to say about that. I told you that I think the lines have blurred-"

"Because I don't want you seeing him anymore?", He narrowed his eyes as he took another step closer, "You realise why that is right? All you have to do is look in the mirror to see that-"

"I know why, Rick", She almost bit out.

"If you know why, then I don't want to fight about this again"

There was a sincerity in his tone that appealed to her greatly, causing her expression to soften.

He planted himself in front of her, "I feel like we have somethan' special here. Somethan' I didn't think I'd find in a time like this, which means I'm willing to work harder for it. For you"

She felt as if her heart has crawled from her ribcage and up into her throat.

"What I wanna know is if you're want the same? If you feel the same? Because if you do then I'm glad, I'd be over the moon if we can take thangs seriously… but I need to know that he won't come before us. I don't wanna have to feel like I'm going up against you when it comes to him. I don't want him to come between us… so if we do this, then I don't want him apart of it. At all"

Carol's words ran through her mind for a countless time, and it dawned on her that it was true. In able to avoid any more tension between she and Rick, and subsequently she and Negan, she had to let one of them go.

She couldn't deny that her feelings for Rick grew with every passing day, and he could offer her the type of happiness that she didn't see as an option in the new world. The thought of taking their blossoming relationship seriously made her glow.

But the thought of sacrificing her friendship with Negan brought her great sorrow. She knew she was surrounded by people who didn't care for him, and wrote him off as every bad word imaginable, but she knew what she knew about Negan, and that would never change.

Her fingers found the pendant that hung from her necklace, and she toyed with it as she looked up at Rick. He barely blinked, his steely blue gaze was glued to her and he could tell by the look in his eyes that he was apprehensive about her answer.

She exhaled through her nose, removing her fingers from the pendant, "...I want the same"

Within the blink of an eye his hands found her hips and his lips pressed against hers. His kiss snatched the breath from her lungs, and her knees almost buckled from the intensity. She could tell by his grip that the man wanted to ravish her and she would have let him, if her heart didn't ache in her chest. He pulled back an inch to look at her, his eyes roaming her face as the tip of his nose brushed hers.

"...Just us..."

…

 **A/N:** I have to thank Gabbyrock for taking the time out to message me a brilliant idea for this fic. Hope you liked the way I incorporated your input! xo


	23. Chapter 23

Chapter 23:

"She came out of nowhere with that damn machete again, got it wedged in the son of a bitch and Carl had to help her out. Twice"

Rick resisted the urge to roll his eyes as he looked at Abraham, "Alright. I'll talk to her"

"Appreciate that", The redheaded man gave him a nod as he turned back towards the front door, "She's gonna get herself killed. I wouldn't have gave a rats ass, if that what's she was aiming for"

Rick shook his head while he wore a look of displeasure, "I'll keep her busy with somethan' else…"

"Alright", Abraham opened the door and stepped out, just as Carl stomped up the porch steps. The two gave each other subtle greetings before Carl entered the home, closing the door behind him.

"He told me about earlier, with Jessie?", Rick sighed, resting both hands on his hip.

His son had the same reaction, rolling his eyes as he stopped in front of him, "Yeah. She just got in the way"

"I'm gonna let her start up the school again. Keep her busy"

His son stared at him, an incredulous look growing on his face, "A school? For who?"

"For kids. Who else?"

"Me? You want me to go to school? Or Judith? You want her to watch Judith?"

Rick scoffed as he shook his head, "She's definitely not watching Judith"

Carl's shoulders fell, "So she can watch me instead?"

"You can handle yourself. Big difference. And from what I heard you could probably teach her a few thangs-"

"So I can be the teacher?", Carl grinned.

"I didn't say _that_ ", Rick responded dryly, "Either way you're going. It probably won't even last more than an hour or two"

"Great…", His son was quite clearly less than impressed as he made his way to the stairs, "Oh, I actually wanted to ask you if I could go out…"

He watched as the teenager turned back to face him, "Where? What for?"

"Michonne and Daryl to the Sanctuary?"

Rick had indeed forgotten about the trip they had arranged, "When do they plan on doing that?"

"Tomorrow"

It wasn't as of Rick didn't trust his son, or Michonne and Daryl, but he didn't like the teenager going beyond the walls without him.

"She said it would probably only take a day. If not then we'd stay over there for the night"

His son wasn't strengthen his argument, "I don't know about that-"

"It's Daryl and Michonne. I don't think I could be safer with anyone else. Other than you, obviously-"

"You haven't been outside with Michonne before. And that little stunt the other day doesn't count-"

"You've seen her yourself. Does it look like she doesn't know what she's doing-"

"I believe she's very capable of taking care of herself out there, and even you. The same goes for Daryl, too"

"Then I can go?"

There was a look of pending excitement in his son's eyes, and Rick hadn't seen him so animated in quite some time, "Alright fine. But you make sure you listen to every-"

"Thing they say. I got it", Carl smiled, turning to go back upstairs.

"And don't get any-"

"Bright ideas. I know!"

"Hey, hey, wait"

Carl stopped and turned back to him again.

"I wanna ask you somethan'...", Rick shifted his stance as he prepared his question, "What do you and Michonne talk about?"

Carl's face pinched with confusion as he shrugged, "Everything. Why?"

Rick almost snorted at his son's broad answer, "Just curious… I'm heading out, I need to go check a few thangs, I'll be back later. Your sister's asleep, so don't wake her."

"Alright".

Carl and Michonne's friendship was peculiar to Rick, as he genuinely did wonder what they spoke about. He had seen glimpses of Michonne's playful side, and he imagined that his son saw even more of that than he did. It made him even more aware of how his relationship with Michonne could affect things between the two of them, and he hoped it would only strengthen their increasing bond. He also hoped that he could encourage her to have some kind of interaction with Judith, without forcing the toddler on her.

Once he left his home, Rick made his first stop at Jessie's house, hoping to catch her before it got too late in the evening. The light was on in her garage, and the woman was fussing around with a tool box as Rick approached.

She looked up at him and tutted, "I guess I know what this is about"

"Yeah… what happened earlier?", Rick stopped a foot away from her.

"I was trying to help. That's all"

"I gathered that. But there's ways we do thangs when it comes to walkers, and having someone like you out there can be distracting. Then we have to worry about protecting you and killing them", He kept his tone light, but still firm.

"I get it", She huffed, turning to face him as she crossed her arms, "They looked like they were outnumbered so I thought I'd lend a hand"

Rick nodded slowly, as if he understood her reasoning, "...Yeah"

She watched him with a pensive expression, waiting for him to continue on.

"Maybe we should get thangs started with the school idea-"

"You mean keep me out the way?", She scoffed.

His gaze sailed off behind her for a second, "No-"

"I'm doing what you've been preaching about since you got here. I may be a little late, but I'm trying here"

"I want you to try, I want you be able to protect yourself and help protect those around you, but the problem is that you're not thinking", He stated firmly, "You need to remember that we don't run outside those gates swinging blindly-"

"I was not swinging blindly, I knew what I was doing-"

"If that was the case, then I wouldn't be here right now because nothing would have went wrong earlier. If my son wasn't there to help you then everythan' could have turned bad really quickly-"

"Okay, hold on a minute, your son and Michonne were stood watching what was happening and they weren't doing a thing to help-"

"Because they're both aware of who was dealing with the situation. Sasha and Abraham know what they're doing and it probably would have gone smoothly if you hadn't interfered"

Her face fell as her hands dropped to her sides.

Rick almost wished he had been better in his delivery, but he also knew he had to drive the message home, "It's great that you want to help, it is, but you need learn how to work with us. If Carl and Michonne were standing back, then you should have stood back too"

She shook her head as she turned back to her tool box, "Right. Got it."

He shifted his stance, "You can talk to a few people that you'd think would be on board teaching with you and then talk to me about it"

"Fine."

Rick backed out of the garage, leaving the highly annoyed women to continue on with her task. He was genuinely glad that the woman had adopted the right attitude, but she was still so inexperienced, and growing to be a source disturbance, instead of a source help.

He made his way to Michonne's home, hoping to spend a few hours in her company for the night. Knowing that Negan would no longer be a factor that came between them gave Rick a new found confidence, as well as great relief. He wasn't sure what her response would have been to his proposal, so to know that she wanted the same future that he did, brought him a certain kind of joy that was inexplicable.

It was while he was walking up the street to her house that he saw Daryl stepping off her porch stairs, lighting and cigarette as he moved.

"What's going on?", Rick queried, glancing towards her home.

"Nothing. Just checking we were still on for tomorrow", Daryl gruffed, snapping his lighter shut, "She told me Carl wanted to come?"

"Yeah. I gave him the all clear"

"Alright.", Daryl's eyes moved beneath his hair, "Where you heading?"

"Uh, I was just going over there to let her know that I told Carl he could go with you guys", He lied a second time, "Ask her to talk to Dwight about a few thangs too…"

Something about the way the other man pursed his lips as he nodded, told Rick that he didn't believe a word of his fibs, "Alright… Well, see you back at the house"

"Yeah", Rick sighed, stepping away from the man. He didn't even know why he bothered lying to Daryl, as the man was one of the most intuitive, and he probably had sussed something going on between the two of them, but as usual, he said nothing.

Michonne appeared at her front door with a smile after Rick knocked moments before, "Hey"

"You okay?", He smiled back, reaching for her waist as he planted a little kiss on her cheek.

"Yeah. You?"

"Yeah"

She closed the door and waved her hand towards the living area, "I let your son raid my book collection"

"Oh boy", He sighed, watching her walk past him.

"Yeah. He had the time of his life"

Rick followed her into the room, where little piles of comic books where sat on the table and the floor, "I didn't know you had this many…"

"I don't like your tone", She glanced back at him from over her shoulder.

"I'm not judging you. It's just… I don't think Carl had this many even before everythan'…", He quietly chuckled.

"I'm have even more back at the Sanctuary… did he tell you about that?", She took a seat on the couch, and he joined her.

"Yeah, he did. I told him he can go"

"Oh great, he can raid my collection over there, too", She smirked, "He told me my taste in superheroes was horrible, but for some reason he can't keep away"

"Yeah. He used to do that a lot. Especially with food. He said he hated French toast", Rick rolled his eyes as he sat back, "But whenever it was on my plate he'd be right there beside me, stealing a slice"

She giggled at him, "Andre was the master of stealing food off anyone's plate"

Rick immediately realised she was talking about her son, and he did his best to hide his surprise, hoping she'd carry on, "Yeah?"

"Yeah", She picked up one of the books closest to her, "I'm surprised Carl didn't take this one"

"...How old was he?"

Her brows knitted together as her eyes met his, "Who?"

"Your son?"

Her gaze dropped to the comic in her hand, as if she hadn't noticed her slip up, "Oh. Three."

Rick didn't want her to retreat for the topic as she had done previously, "...Do you feel like you can't talk to me about him?"

"That's not how I see it"

"You can though. If you want to", He rested his hand on her lower back, his thumb brushing the thin material of her shirt.

"I know…", She almost whispered, her gaze trailing off elsewhere, as she changed the topic, "I'm going to talk to Dwight about everything with this other group tomorrow… and I was thinking of staying up there for a few days soon"

His thumb stopped moving, "Yeah?"

"Yeah. I just want to see how things are going over there… see if he's got the handle of this 'leader thing'..."

Rick nodded, "I understand… but do you think that's a good idea right about now? With everything that's going on?"

She looked at him, "I think now's the best time. They need to be prepared too. If anything happens… the Sanctuary has the most fighters… they'd be the best ally in all of this"

He knew she had a valid point, but that didn't make him feel any better about the idea, "You're right… but if you're already going up there then is there any need to go again so soon after?"

"I'll be going on my own on the second trip…", Her eyes studied him closely, "I feel like I haven't been there for Dwight as much as I should have because of everything that's happened here"

Rick's chest grew as he inhaled, "I understand"

"I'll be back before you know it", She flashed him one of her warm, and very contagious smiles, leading him to smile back.

"I should hope so"

She raised an eyebrow at him, "And if I don't? Are you going to kidnap me again-"

"Oh god", Rick groaned, taking her by the waist and pulling her to lean against him, her back to his chest as he head rested on his shoulder, "I feel like you don't like to accept my apologies-"

"You've had to apologise for a lot", She countered, resting her arms over his, "So one thing at a time"

"What do I have to do to make it up to you?"

She began to giggle, "I might need to get back to you on that"

"Well I'm here now", He hinted, his thumb brushing over the skin of her arm.

" _Why deputy_?", She gasped, in a southern accent.

"Here we go", Rick chuckled.

" _I do declare_ -"

"I've never heard anybody talk like that", He insisted dryly.

"I wish I did", She sighed, her gaze rolling up to the ceiling, "I wish I did a lot of things before all this…"

"Like what?", He queried, studying the side of her face.

"...Travelled more… a few crazy things, like skydiving, maybe even-"

"You wanted to jump out of a plane? On purpose?", His face pinched in confusion, "What for?"

She rolled her eyes at him, "Just to say, I've done it"

"Well, you could say you have now. No one has a way of finding out if you did or not"

Rick could see her cheeks rise as she smiled, "That's true. I could just say I have. Carl and I were playing a game before, pretending we were eating our favourite foods… when it was just pasta"

He raised an eyebrow at her, "Yeah?... That's what the two of you do?"

She tilted her head to look up at him, "We do a whole bunch of things, why?"

He shook his head, "No reason, just curious"

"I think somebody is jealous-"

Michonne's sentence was interrupted by a loud, heavy knock on the front door. She and Rick both stilled for a second, before she stood up and made her way to the entrance of the home. Rick sat forward on the chair as he listened, wondering who it could be at that time of the evening.

"Daryl said Rick's here, right?"

Rick quickly rose from his seat and walked into view, and once by the door he saw Tobin hovering on the porch, noticeably shaken, "What happened?"

"Something… something strange, I don't know", The tall man huffed, "I was on watch, by the gates, and a walker came out of nowhere

.. I was going to wait until it was at the gates to stab it but… it stopped, it was whispering something to me-"

"What?", Rick squinted at Tobin.

"It was whispering, it was saying something but… I couldn't make it out…"

He stared at Tobin for a moment, "A walker was whispering something to you?"

"Yeah", Tobin nodded, "I turned to call for someone and when I turned back it was gone"

Rick glanced at Michonne, who was wearing the same slight frown as him, "You're certain about this?"

"Never been so certain in my life"

He scratched his brow with his thumb, "Alright, it's dark out now so we can't do nothing about it but… we're gonna have to keep an eye out for tomorrow for any-… whatever it was you saw"

Tobin nodded a second time, "Alright… tomorrow… tomorrow"

Rick shifted his stance, "Why don't you go get some rest, Bruce is up next on watch anyway"

"Yeah… alright. I will"

Both Rick and Michonne watched the man descend the porch steps before closing the door. Michonne frowned at Rick, "That doesn't sound right"

"A _talking_ walker doesn't sound right?", Rick repeated, obviously agreeing that the man didn't make sense.

"Then it wasn't a Walker. If he's certain that it was talking to him… and it was gone when he turned back, then that wasn't a walker"

He quickly realised what she was getting at, "Someone dressed up as at walker?"

She nodded, "It's possible. I've covered myself in their guts before and I looked like one of them"

"So have we…", Rick agreed, rubbing the back of his neck, "Whoever it was obviously trying to send a message-"

"You said you've seen some strange walkers around here, right?"

"Yeah… missing their skin"

"Missing there skin?"

"On their faces…", The pin finally dropped for Rick, "There faces… They could have been wearing it's face as-"

"Some kind of mask", She finished, her lip curling in disgust, "That's some disguise"

"It worked though…", Rick rubbed his thumb and index finger together as he thought, "They may very have been trying sending a message then, we just don't know what… but they know where we are… they must have been watching us for some time-"

"We need to stop looking for normal people. If that's how they travel, then we could have passed them plenty of times-"

"I want everybody ready, just in case", Rick started for the door, when Michonne grabbed hold of his arm.

"Now?"

"Now. Everyone on watch needs to know what they're looking out for"

"Whoever these people are, they've tried to deliver their message, but failed. They know that we probably know about the incident by now, and they know we'll probably be looking out for them, so they won't attempt it again. Not twice in one night. They obviously want to stay hidden"

He considered her point, though he still held the doorknob, "Well, that's what's going to happen. I still need to let everyone know, regardless. We don't know who's out there right now."

Her eyes darted all over his face as she slowly nodded, releasing her hold, "You're right"

"I'll be back over here when I'm done, alright?"

"Alright."


	24. Chapter 24

**Chapter 24:**

Michonne had thought about the decision she was about to make for hours on end. She had thought about all possible consequences, and she knew that only a small amount of good would come from her next move, but she was hoping that it would pay off in the long run.

A cold breeze ran through the safe zone, as it was in the early hours of the morning. Rick had left her for the night; after returning from his task of warning the others of what Tobin saw, the two of them spent the rest of their time together in her bed. She loved to lay beside him, listening to him talk about any and everything, and she also loved to lay beneath him when they were done with words.

It was because she had only just been with him that night, that guilt brewed in her stomach for what she was about to do, but she wouldn't be able to just continue on with the days otherwise.

She descended the steps to the basement that housed Negan, encountering Bruce, who wore a frown from the minute he saw her.

"Nobody's allowed down here", The man announced, looking her from head to toe.

She nodded, "I know, but Rick was meant to come and check on him but he had an emergency at home, so he sent me instead"

It was a risky lie, but Michonne knew that the man was not one of Rick's closest confidants, so she imagined he wasn't up to date with everything that had happened with Negan.

Bruce looked unsure, beginning to shake his head, "I don't know about that. He's said time and time again, no one's allowed down here, and I'm not trying get _my_ ass in trouble-"

"...Would you rather I went and got Rick?", It was a bluff that she hoped he wouldn't call.

He seemed to mull over that other option, and quickly came to a decision, "Go on"

"Thanks", She stepped past him and into the home. The lights flickered on, and she left the door ajar as she approached the cell door.

Negan groaned, rolling over on his mattress, "What the fuck-"

He squinted at her, trying to get his eyes to focus as she planted herself at the entrance. She wasn't sure what she felt seeing him, but it wasn't anything good.

A light chuckle left him as he laid on his back, staring up at the ceiling, "Well ain't this something?"

She didn't speak just yet, instead she was trying read his reaction, and subsequently, his mood.

"I wasn't expecting to see you anytime soon. Not after that speech your fucking cowboy gave me. Does he know you're down here?", He glanced at her, then shook his head, "Nah. I doubt that. I highly doubt that. As much as I can't stand that little prick, I'm sure he'd kick up one hell of a fuss if he knew you were down here"

The man loved to hear himself talk, and she was sure it was probably the most he had said in a few days. She gathered herself as she slowly inhaled, "...I wanted to thank you, for everything before… this"

He turned his head to look at her.

"You didn't have to do the things you did, but you did. I think about that person that you were back then, a lot. I've seen glimmers of that person here and there… and I think that side of you isn't completely gone, just buried under piles and piles of shit…", She huffed, her eyes meeting his, "I think being in here… not having to make lifesaving decisions, not having to fight for people you care about and having time to reflect, will give that side of you a chance to show itself again"

He sat up, turning to face her with his legs stretched out in front of him.

"For as long as you are the way you are, I won't be able to be happy, because I'll feel like I need to protect you, but it gets harder and harder to stand by someone who only cares about himself-"

"I care. I fucking care", He spat back, "You claimed you care but you've fucking cut my hand off, you've knocked me out-"

"To stop you!", She hissed, stepping closer to the gate, "The other Saviors aren't your enemy. Rick, is not your enemy. I am not your enemy. You are, and you will continue to be your own worst enemy for as long as you believe that you can survive in this world by stealing and killing-"

"That's the only way we survive in this world 'Chonne! Wake the fuck up and take the daisies out that tight ass of yours-"

"No, because it's that kind of attitude that puts you and everyone around you in danger. If everyone else adopts that kind of attitude then it sets the tone for what's to come, and we cannot start life again with that kind of mentality because then there will be none", She fumed, staring at him with angry eyes, "There's a chance for us to rebuild something here, so I will not let you ruin that for anybody else, and I will not hesitate to kill you if you try"

To anybody else, it would have seemed that the man was unfazed by her threat, but it was little subtleties in his body language that told her different, "You'll kill me?"

"I will", She affirmed, her tone stern.

He smirked, reviving his arrogant attitude, "Oh 'Chonne. That's cute. You and your piss stain boyfriend are a match made in heaven then, huh? Fighting to save the world together. Real fucking cute."

She ignored him, "I won't be coming back down here, but I will if I have to"

"Oh, I bet you fucking will", He mocked, "And I'll be right here waiting for you"

She spun on her heel to leave, glad to have finally gotten her thoughts off her chest.

"Hey!", He called, causing her to stop. She backed up, watching him quickly retrieve something from beneath his mattress, then make his was over to the door. He held out the picture she had given him of the two of them, "Take it"

She didn't unfold her arms, instead she just stared up at him with narrowed eyes.

"This is probably the closest you'll get to that man you knew", His gaze travelled to her neck for only a second, "...I'll take it back if he resurfaces"

Her gaze dropped back to the Polaroid, and she snatched it from his hand before leaving without another word.

The next day she was up early, and ready for her trip with Carl and Daryl. She was looking forward to returning to the Sanctuary, and seeing Dwight, as well as having the company of Carl and Daryl.

She left her home with small backpack and her katana in hand, and made her way to the Grimes residence like they had planned. While Rick had given her an open invitation to his home, she hadn't yet used it, which was mainly due to his children, for two very different reasons.

Once on their porch, she knocked on the door and stepped back, listening as heavy footsteps moved around the home.

Daryl appeared, swinging open the door, "Come on in, we're just finishing up"

"Alright", She strolled in, closing the door behind her. As soon as she heard the faint sound of a child's laughter she stopped, knowing the youngest member of the family was nearby, "I'll wait here"

"Alright", Daryl didn't bother looking back, instead he walked further down the hall and turned into another room.

Michonne took the opportunity to look around the home from her spot by the door, noticing only a slight difference in the decor from her own home. She heard footsteps trudging down the stairs, and she looked up to see Rick, holding his daughter in his hands. She flashed him a quick smile, "Hey"

"You okay?", He asked, strolling over to her with the girl on his hip.

She nodded hurriedly, her pitch higher than usual, "Yeah. Fine"

"You sure about that?"

Her eyes sailed from his, to the smaller brow set that watched her closely, "Yeah. Fine"

Judith raised her hand and waved at Michonne, speaking behind her pacifier, "Hi"

Michonne's eyes widened, "Oh, hey there, tiny person"

Rick chuckled at her, "Tiny person?"

"Well she is", She tore her gaze away from Judith, "She's tiny… and a person"

"That's true", He peered over his shoulder for a moment, then closer the space between them, giving her a soft kiss on the lips.

She pulled back in horror, hissing at him, "We are not alone!"

He frowned at her, "I know, that's why I checked-"

"Judith is right there!", It felt strange saying his daughter's name, but she didn't have time to think about it.

Rick squinted at her, "Do you think she'll tell Carl? Because chances of that happening are slim, she only knows how to say 'Hi' and 'Bye', so…"

She tried to bite back a smile, but failed, "You know exactly what I mean"

"I do", He grinned, sneaking her another quick kiss, timing it just right, as they soon heard footsteps echoing from deeper in the home.

"Let's get this show on the road", Daryl announced, stomping through the home, "Carl!"

"I'm here", The teen replied, skipping down for states, "And I'm ready"

Daryl was the first out the home, and Michonne stood out on the porch while Rick spoke to his son.

"Make sure you-", He began, shifting Judith from one hip to another.

"Listen. I know", Carl finished flatly.

"And don't-"

"Wonder off. I know"

Rick stared at him, "Good. Be careful"

"I will, bye!", Carl started for the steps.

Michonne giggled as Rick shook his head in despair, "Nice pep talk"

"He shouldn't be a problem", He assured, watching his son for a few moments, before looking back at her, "You think you'll be back tonight?"

"Hopefully", She answered truthfully.

He nodded, his gaze wandering away from her for a moment, "Alright…"

"You might just get an early night tonight", She teased, backing away from him.

"...Maybe I don't want one?"

Her stomach fluttered from his words, but the feeling didn't last long, as she quickly confessed, "I saw Negan last night"

It was if someone had sucked the good mood right out of him, as his expression immediately darkened, "What?"

"I went and saw Negan, after you left", She repeated with less conviction, "I spoke to him"

Rick's gaze sailed past her as he slowly nodded, exposing his clenched jaw, "You went and saw him, after everythan' I said-"

"I'm sorry, but I had-... I needed to, and I want us to talk about this when I get back"

His eyes locked back on hers.

"Please?", She pleaded softly.

He took a moment, as if he were thinking over her request, before agreeing, "We will"

"Okay", She spun on her heel and skipped down the steps, hoping he wouldn't dwell on the news while they were gone.

She had imagined that the news would anger him, and she would prefer it did, rather than hurt him. She was being honest when she agreed to the terms of their relationship, but she had to cut ties with Negan her way, and she planned to explain that to Rick.

Her travels with Carl and Daryl began, and they set off in one of the many cars the community kept. She was secretly hoping to use the trip as an excuse to get to know Daryl better, since the man was so tight lipped, and didn't attempt to stray into conversation.

"If you could eat one thing again, what would it be?"

Michonne frowned at the windshield as she thought, before peering into the backseat to see Carl, "Soya milk"

The teen looked horrified, "Soya milk? That's what you'd have again?"

She nodded, "Yep. It's great"

Daryl glanced at her from the driver's seat, "That's that milk made out of some kind ah' beans, right?"

"That's the one"

The man snorted, "Fuck that"

"Have either of you even tried it before?", Carl and Daryl shook their heads, their top lips curling in disgust, leading Michonne to roll her eyes, "Alright fine, what would you pick?"

"A burger", Carl grinned, "And curly fries"

Daryl pursed his lips for a moment, "Some damn ribs"

She sighed, shaking her head at both of them, "Should have known"

"What made you want to stop eating meat?", Carl queried, tilting his head as he looked at her strangely, "Have you always been like that?"

"Yeah. I was all for saving the animals", She sighed, "I had a lot of pets as a kid, too"

"But people didn't eat pets…"

"What you'd consider as a pet and what someone else considers as food, are two very different things. Some cultures wouldn't dare to eat the animals that most others ate. Where you would have drawn the line on what meat you ate before was all relative, but I bet you're not as picky now?"

Carl peered out her from beneath his hair, "We ate dogs, once"

She glanced back at him, "See? And I bet you wouldn't have dreamt of a thing before all this?"

"Never"

"So you're happy as shit eating your leaves then?", Daryl quipped, wearing a crooked smile.

She side eyed him, "Leaves?"

"That's what it is ain't it?"

She opened her mouth to refute his claim, when she noticed something strange in the field they passed, "Did you see that?"

"What?"

"That walker", She turned in her seat to look out the back window, "Just standing there"

"..It's just a walker?", Carl shrugged.

"They don't stand still when they see something. Even if their legs can't move their arms will", She squinted, trying to see where three strange figure went.

Daryl looked through the rear-view, "Rick told me about what happened with Tobin"

"We don't think it's walkers at all. We think they're people using their skin as camouflage, so they could hide with other walkers"

"Really?", Carl's eyebrows sprung up, "From that other group?"

"We think so. It makes sense, I mean, it's gross but it would work"

"It would", Daryl rasped, nibbling on his thumb nail, "Just keep your eyes peeled"

Michonne felt uneasy, to say the least. Knowing there was possibly a hostile group watching there everyone put her on high alert, especially with Carl present. She had many reasons for protecting the teen, and she didn't want to bring the boy back to his father in a state after their first outing.

When they arrived at the dilapidated mall that Michonne had wanted to visit, they parked as close to the entrance as they could, which meant they attracted the attentions of many corpses.

Michonne and Daryl got out first, impaling the walker's closest to them to make room for Carl. The teen soon helped them, using his knife as he fought beside Michonne. She did her best to stay vigilant, looking at every walker she killed carefully, but an uneasy feeling was growing in her stomach, which only drove her resolution to protect Carl, and return him to his father unharmed.

Once they cleared the entrance, the trio used a broken window to enter, and much to Michonne's annoyance, almost every store was cleared out, all but a toy store. She helped Carl fill a little pink carry case with items for his sister, while Daryl waited outside.

"I don't even think she'll play with these"

Michonne glanced at Carl as she removed a toy from its box, "She probably will. It's all bright colours and noisy… kids love that"

The teenager stared at her for a moment, "Where you a nurse… or something?"

She furrowed her brows at him, "No… not a nurse"

Carl continued to stare at her, "...Did you have kids?"

She knew he'd eventually ask, but that didn't make her feel better about answering, "I had one child"

His eyes widened, "Really?...Why didn't you tell me?"

Her brows furrowed once again, "I didn't think that was something I needed to tell you?"

"I told you about my mom", He countered softly.

Michonne stopped what she was doing, sensing he was genuinely shocked by her revelation, "It's not something I rush to talk about with anyone, Carl"

He gave her a slow, understanding nod, but still seemed taken aback.

She inhaled slowly, "I promise, we'll talk about it. When we reach the Sanctuary… okay?"

His eyes lit up only a fraction, but he nodded again, with more enthusiasm. She secretly found it funny that the young boy had managed to worm his way into her heart with barely any effort. She found his boyish charm sweet, and while she wouldn't admit it to him, he held the same good traits of his father. It was as if she had inadvertently adopted them both as her own, which she didn't mind at all.

They left the mall shortly after collecting items for Judith's entertainment, and Michonne almost breathed a sigh of relief when they were back on the road, but she soon learned that she had no reason to.

Only a mile away from the mall where they met with a line of, what appeared to be walkers, stood in the road. Upon closer inspection, she learned that that wasn't the case at all. The all held weapons, and didn't attempt to break the human chain they had created.

"What do we do?", Carl asked from the back seat.

"Get down", Michonne instructed, not taking her eyes off the threat.

"I can floor it", Daryl muttered to Michonne, "Try to drive right through 'em-"

Michonne almost jumped when the bullet shot through the windshield, and she yelled to Daryl, "Go!"

He did as he was told, slamming his foot down on the pedal and speeding down the street. The strangers in the street jumped out the way as the past, still shooting at the car.

Michonne sank down in her seat and looked in the back of the vehicle, "Carl stay down-"

Her blood ran cold when she caught sight of the teenager, slumped across the seats, with a blood pouring from where his eye used to be.


	25. Chapter 25

**Chapter 25:**

"We haven't seen anything around here at all today. I've checked with everyone and they all said the same thing"

Rick slowly nodded as he listened to Sasha, his eyes scanning across the horizon.

"...Still no sign of them"

His eyes slid over to the woman, "If they got there late then they said they would stay over. I'd rather they did that then try to make it back during the night"

She seemed to agree on his point, "That's true, but still. We still don't know what we're up against, or where these people are even coming from, I don't think anybody should be going out any time of day right now"

"We'll find out soon enough"

Sasha nodded, glancing back towards the town, "...Well at least you got an early night"

He raised a questioning brow at her, "Huh?"

"Last night, you got to bed early right? No late night strolls across the community…"

His cheeks threatened of flame, "I don't know-"

The woman chuckled evilly, "Your secret's safe with me"

"...It's not really a secret"

"Oh I know, I was just saying that to make you feel better", She snickered, looking over the wall with a wicked smile.

He shook his head as he tried to compose himself, "Of all the people-"

"It just _had_ to be me"

He shifted his stance when he saw a vehicle driving towards the safe zone, but soon recognised it, "Jesus"

"Hope this is just a friendly visit", Sasha mumbled, turning to the ladder.

Rick hoped so too. He waited for Sasha to descend the ladder first before following, trying to keep his mind focused on something else, other than what Michonne has disclosed to him before she left the previous day.

"What's going on?", He queried, watching Jesus step put the vehicle alone.

"Hey", Jesus greeted, wearing a pensive expression, "I thought I'd come up here, see how things are going…"

Rick stared at him, waiting for him to continue.

"...We've lost people. Three to be exact", Jesus lowered his voice as he stepped closer to them, "Three days ago, they went out to get some wood nearby and it's like they just vanished. Maggie suggested I come up here and talk to you, see if any things happened"

Rick glanced over his shoulder, checking who was around before tipping his head at Jesus, signalling for him to walk with him, "Somebody said they say somethan' strange… someone dressed up as walker… wearing a walkers face"

The other man's eyebrows sprung up, "A walkers face?"

"Yeah. We saw a couple walkers missing their skin a few days before… so I'm guessing they made this disguise nearby"

"...Have you heard from the kingdom? Or the Sanctuary?"

"Nothing from Ezekiel, but Michonne and Daryl went up to the Sanctuary today. Left this morning with Carl", Rick explained almost regretfully, "Said they'll be back later"

Jesus nodded, "I can stick around to until their return then. Find out if Dwight's had any problems"

"How is Maggie doing? And Glenn?"

"They're fine. She's doing just fine"

"Good. I might want to get the others together, sit down and talk about this. We know this group are somewhere close but… we need to figure out where. And soon. Tobin said the person that came up to the gates was whispering somethan', but he didn't catch it-"

"I doubt it was anything good"

"Rick!"

Both men turned back to the gates when they heard Rosita call him. Rick watched the girl begin to open the gate again, and moments later another car appeared, one that he wasn't familiar with. Jesus and Rick started back towards the vehicle, and it was when Rick saw Dwight and three other Savior's, that he began to feel uneasy.

"What's going on?", He quizzed, stalking ahead of Jesus.

Dwight seemed to hesitate, "They had a problem. They came to us-"

"What problem?"

"...These people. Michonne told us about them, said they cut them off in the road", Dwight shifted his stance, "Shot at them-"

"Shot at them?", Rick repeated, his heart racing in his chest.

Dwight nodded hastily, "He's fine- he's stable. We took care of him. We're still taking care of him"

Rick didn't need to ask who, for the simple fact that Dwight chose to lead with that piece of information first, "Where?"

The red haired man's shoulders slumped, "In the face- his eye. It got his eye"

Rick narrowed his eyes at him for a moment, trying not to picture the gruesome scene, "His eye? He was shot in the…"

"Michonne and Daryl haven't left him. They've been at his side the whole night-"

Rick turned from the man as he boomed, "Open the gate!"

He headed straight for the nearest vehicle, closely followed by Jesus, "I'm coming with you"

Rick didn't care whether the man did or not. He didn't particularly care about anything other than getting to his son.

"I'm in the back", Sasha called, running to the back seat.

He climbed in the 4x4, barely waiting for the other two to get situated in their seats before he started the car.

Rick was sure his heart had migrated to his ears, as all he could hear was a dull thumping sound. His hands would have been trembling if he weren't holding onto the steering wheel so tightly. All he could do was pictures his son with a large, gaping wound on his face. He didn't want to, but he did. It was pointless to regret allowing the trip but he did that too. He regretted that decision more than anything in that moment. The combination of intense feelings only made him drive faster, more recklessly, desperate to see what had become of his son because of his poor choice in judgment.

Sasha and Jesus tried to speak to him, but there was no use, he had officially checked out, only to regain some sort of motor skill when he saw Carl. Until then, he truly, didn't care about anything.

"Look!", Sasha called, leaning through the front seats to point towards the windshield.

A small herd of walkers were crossing a field, there attentions drawn to the vehicles. Rick slammed his foot on the breaks, and climbed out the car as quickly as he had got in.

With his hatchet in hand, he stomped into the field, watching every corpse closely. He swung the weapon into the side of the first walkers head, as it's missing arm told him it was definitely not a person in disguise. Neither was the second, or the third. He grew livid, hacking away at heads, dark blood spraying across him with every impact.

With the last walker down, it became apparent to Rick that whoever he was looking for wasn't there, and his efforts were wasted. He cursed under his breath, raking his fingers through his messy locks as he matched back to the vehicle, where Sasha with her rifle raised and Jesus held his knife, ready to help if he needed it. Dwight and the other Savior's watched from outside their car too, having caught up with them after Rick sped away.

He continued on with his journey the same way it had started, driving dangerously fast until they reached the Sanctuary. It was a good thing the gates opened before he could reach them, as he would have certainly driven through the fence instead.

Questions swarmed his mind as he Dwight led him to the infirmary, trying to speak to him like Sasha and Jesus had done. Rick was too busy trying to figure out why it had been his son. He wanted to know the teen was in the firing line, when did it happen, whether he's been unconscious the whole time, or if he's woken up yet. He wanted to know why he wasn't sent for sooner, or why Michonne and Daryl didn't bring him right back to the safe zone. He knew he would get answers eventually, but he wasn't thinking rationally, and his was forcing himself to question every little detail.

"In here"

Dwight opened the heavy door and stepped aside for Rick to go in. He immediately recognised it as the room that Negan was treated in after Michonne cut off his arm, which only added to the nausea he already felt.

The windows had been covered with sheets of cardboard, darkening the room as it blocked the sun's rays. There was a makeshift curtain hung up that Rick walked around, and he nearly crumbled when he finally caught sight of his son, laying topless in bed with a large white bandage sat diagonally across his face. Michonne was sat on the chair beside the bed, holding one of his hands as she slept, face down in the crook of her arm.

Rick walked around the bed with glistening eyes, scanning over every square inch of the teens face. He took a seat on the edge, trying his best to compose himself, but it wasn't easy. He sensed some kind of movement behind him, but made no attempt to look back, or speak to her.

"He hasn't woken up yet…"

Her voice was barely a whisper, and Rick could see her out of his peripheral view as he peered down at Carl.

"...They came out of nowhere. We were making our way here and they were in the street, we didn't know what they were going to do…"

Rick clenched his jaw as he sniffed, taking Carl's warm hand in his quivering ones.

"Emily said it didn't go any further than his-"

"Can you leave, please", Rick rasped coldly, his brows knitting together in annoyance. He heard her huff, her chair scraping the floor as she pushed away from it.

It was only when he heard the door close that he briefed a sigh of relief. While he was beside himself with rage and upset, he didn't wish to lash out at her while he stumbled through his shock. He knew the chances of them encountering the unknown group on their travels were high when he allowed Carl to go along with them, and he accepted that he agreed to the trip as a whole, but a small part of him wished she and Daryl could have done more to protect his son. He imagined they did their best, but there best hadn't been good enough in this case.

Rick stayed by his son's side for some time, stuck between figuring out what to do next in that moment and in general. He couldn't sit around and play it safe any longer, something needed to be done, and quickly at that.

The door clicked open as Rick paced, and Daryl stepped in the room, his eyes landing on a still unconscious Carl. He closed the door behind him, taking his time to enter the room, "Anythan'?"

Rick just shook his head as he continued to move.

Daryl eyed him carefully, "You see anythan' when you were coming up here?"

"No", Rick choked out, "Nothing at all"

"...They came out of nowhere, but I saw who shot him though. Big guy… I didn't see anyone else with a gun… just knives-"

"Where?"

"Not even a mile away from that mall Michonne told us about"

Rick almost flinched when he heard her name, "I going back out there after he wakes up"

Daryl raised a curious eyebrow at him, "Near the mall?"

"I'm looking wherever I have to. They've killed plenty of people already, and it sounds like they don't have intention on slowing down soon, so there out there, I know it. We'll find them"

"...Yeah. Alright"

"Where's Dwight?"

"...He's out there", Daryl tilted his head towards the door, "Talking to Michonne and Jesus"

Rick should have known that she wouldn't have gone far, "We're gonna' need his help"

The other man nodded, "Got it"

Rick continued to pace until he was growing dizzy. All he could think about was making a plan of action, figuring out the best way to tear apart the people behind his son's injury. Everything he glanced at the boy he found himself growing angrier than before, so much that he didn't realise that Daryl had left the room and Michonne had reappeared, until he looked up and saw her stood by the bed watching him.

He didn't say anything, instead he just raked his hands through his hair as he moved around for a countless time, but she spoke, "I'm sorry, Rick"

He exhaled tiredly while trying not to look in her direction.

"...If I even knew… if I even saw some way to stop that from happening, even if that meant throwing myself in front of him, I would have. I wouldn't have had to think about it", She stressed quietly, "...I wouldn't want anyone to feel what I've felt before… least of all you"

He stopped when he realised she was talking about her own son, which led him to remember something else, "What did you go see Negan about?"

Her thin brows narrowed at him, "...I just spoke to him-"

"About what?", He cocked his heat to the side as he watched her closely.

"...I told him that I wasn't going down there anymore, and that I'd kill him if he tried to stop what I'm trying to do here. What everyone is trying to do here"

Rick sniffed as he looked elsewhere, "You had to tell him that?"

"I did", She nodded, giving him her notorious stoic look.

"Why'd you sneak off to see him then?"

"Because I was sure you would have stopped me. You expected me to server something on your terms and that's _not_ fair-"

"Because your terms are better, right? That's how we've been doing thangs?"

She slowly inhaled, "I really don't want to argue with you about this. I still did what you wanted, and I still stand by the choice I made. I know that you're mad and upset right now but we are still on the same page and I still want the same things as you. None of that has changed"

"It doesn't feel like that right now", He sighed as he continued to look elsewhere, allowing her words slowly sink in.

"The whole point of this trip was to come here and warn Dwight about what was going on, and to get him on board with the rest of us, and I don't want us to lose sight of that. There is still a pretty big threat lurking in the distance and I don't want to go up against that without you at my side. I need you"

He had to look at her when he heard her voice break towards the end of her speech, and it quickly became apparent to him that she was holding back something, desperate to keep herself together. The sight only weakened him further. He ran both hands over his face as he tried to calm, "I get it"

"Do you?"

"I do", He insisted firmly, "I do… we want the same things. I know we do"

Her shoulders fell as she relaxed, finally feeling comfortable enough to move closer to him, "Thank you for listening to me"

He watched her reach up to cup his face, and he immediately felt some sort of relief when her palm rested on his cheek, "I'm just… so-"

"I know, and I'm so sorry, I tried to-"

"I know", He nodded, placing his hand over hers, "...I have to kill them all for this. Every last one of them"

She looked up at him with glistening eyes, "We will"

Rick took her in his arms, able to find some comfort in the whirlwind of emotions he was feeling. It dawned on him that he needed her too, in every sense of the word, but most importantly, right then with Carl, and it was when he looked past her at his son, that he noticed the boy looking at them from his one good eye. Rick chest almost caved, but he managed to tap Michonne before breaking away from her.

"Hey…", He nearly whispered, stalking over to the bed quickly, "You feeling alright, son?"

The teen gave a tiny nod of his head, making no attempt to speak. He looked tired more than anything, his eye barely able to stay open.

"I'm glad to see that", Rick took his hand in his as he beamed down at him, "Don't you worry about a thang, you just rest, alright? You're at the Sanctuary, they're gonna' take care of you... and I'm gonna' take care of the people that did this".


	26. Chapter 26

**Chapter 26:**

"Does your head hurt?"

Michonne brushed Carl's hair back from his face, revealing the large white bandage wrapped around his head to cover his eye. The teen gave her a little shrug, "Not really… It just feels weird"

"It will do for a while but you'll get the hang of it", Rick assured from the driver's seat, peering at his son via the rear-view mirror, "I don't think it'll be easy, you have to get the hang of doing thangs differently but you'll figure it out. I know you will"

Michonne wore a little smile as she peaked at Rick, noticing that he was doing his best to keep his son in high spirits. She looked back at Carl, "This would actually be a good time to start training you with the machete"

He frowned at her as best he could, "I can already use-"

"Properly", She added dryly.

Carl gave her an unimpressed look, "And I can show you how to use a gun"

A little gasps escaped her, "I can use a gun"

"Not as well as your sword"

"He has a point", Rick nodded in agreement in the front seat, "Well both of you do. You should be able to use both, you never know what can happen…"

Michonne pulled a face at Carl, leading the teen to bite his lip as he snickered. She was about to respond to Rick when the car swerved from side to side but with control, causing she and Carl to rock back and forth. She looked at Rick with a frown, and saw he was wearing a crooked smile as he peered out the windshield.

After spending weeks at the Sanctuary while Carl heeled, she was looking forward to returning back to Alexandria. She knew Rick was pleased to finally take them home too, as he had been travelling back and forth between the two communities, all while looking out for the group that injured his son. Michonne was secretly surprised that he trusted her to stay with Carl, though she wouldn't have left him regardless of what Rick said. She could see that the teen was trying to put on a brave face, and it pained her to see him struggle, but she knew he didn't want her pity. Carl kept his head up high and continued on with determination.

Spending so much time with him also left Michonne thinking about the Grimes Family often. She wondered if Rick would tell Carl about their relationship, and what that meant for the four of them, as there was still Judith to consider. She worried if the toddler would warm to her quickly or run a mile screaming.

"...And we're home", Rick announced as they followed behind Daryl on the road to the safe zone. The other man had insisted on riding his motorcycle, for reasons unbeknownst to Michonne.

"Wouldn't it be great if someone baked you a cake?", Michonne playfully nudged Carl as she tilted her head towards Rick in the front seat.

"That would be great, actually", The teen quickly played along.

"You get three squares of chocolate and that's it", Rick shot back flatly.

Michonne rolled her eyes, "I guess it will do"

"Yeah", Carl chuckled, smoothing his hair over his bandage as if he were trying to discreetly cover it.

Eugene was the person tasked with opening the gate for the vehicles, and everyone immediately noticed that the man was sporting a sizeable bruise under his eye, taking up most of his cheek bone. Rick came to a rolling stop, opened his window as he squinted at him, "What the hell happened to you?"

Eugene blew out a breath as he shifted from foot to foot, "I think you'd better get in here before I disclose any details about the previous night's events"

Rick frowned at him as he did as suggested, driving further into the community before parking up along the wall. The safe zone looked relatively the same as how Michonne had left it, but she had learnt in more recent years that not all is as it seems.

"Go on? What happened?", Rick quizzed as they all approached Eugene, "Were you attacked?"

"...In a sense, yes", Eugene nodded, securing the second gate that blocked the view to the community, "I was on out here watch last night, only because Rosita needed to relieve herself so I took over. I was standing right there, reading, when it was brought to my attention that someone had gotten into a vehicle, so I went over to investigate and saw that it was Jessie"

Michonne looked from the man telling the story to Rick, who continued to stare at Eugene with great intensity, "Jessie?"

"Yes. I was going to ask her what she was doing, when I was knocked unconscious by an unknown male, who was discovered to be non-other than Negan"

Everyone's eyes sprung open, including Michonne's, but no more than Rick, "What?"

"Your back", Sasha huffed as she jogged up to them, followed by a marching Abraham, "Did he tell you what happened-"

"Where is he?", Rick demanded, looking from person to person.

"They got out", She explained, waving her hand towards the gate, "It was open and Eugene was laid out when I got here-"

"Who was watching them?"

"Bruce was, he said that Jessie came in and held him up-"

"How'd she get him out?", Rick looked as if he was about to lose his mind, "I've got the key-"

"Sledge hammer, she gave it to him… he knocked Bruce out, he's still in the infirmary"

Michonne ran her hands over her hair as she thought, while Rick seemed to get angrier by the second, "I want three people here on look out and two in the tower"

"Got it", Abraham nodded, already stomping in the other direction, but not without placing a heavy hand on Carl's shoulder as he passed the teen.

Rick turned back to his son, "Come on, we'll take you home before we do anythan' else-"

"I'll be fine", Carl insisted, already backing away, "I'll find Judith and head back to the house"

"Are we heading back out?!", Daryl questioned from his motorcycle, already turning around to face the gate.

Rick slowly inhaled, "They could be anywhere-"

"He wouldn't go back to Sanctuary", Michonne announced, "Trying to get everyone back on his side would be too much hassle… and he wouldn't have a reason to go to the hilltop or the kingdom with just Jessie by his side…"

The man all stared at Michonne with pensive expressions as they waited for more information from her, and Michonne racked her brain to come up with something, "The last time he broke out he wanted to get out the area, He didn't see a reason to stay here… Get as far away from here as possible"

"So you're saying we just leave him?", Daryl looked at her strangely.

"I'm saying he's had a head start, and he won't be settling down anywhere soon, he'll know we'll come looking for him", She clarified, "We have another threat lurking in the distance, one that will come for us before he does, so that's the one we need to concentrate on"

It seemed that her last point got through to them, as they both nodded in agreement, even if it was reluctantly. She wanted him back in his cell just as much as the next person, if not more, but the last time they left the safe zone her dead little friend was grossly wounded. They had more than enough to worry about, and while Negan was one of them, he was without an army, And therefore the least dangerous.

However, that still didn't make anyone feel better about his disappearance, least of all Rick. She could see that he was unearthed by the news and she couldn't blame him, since he had only just got his son back to the safety. He could hide his frustrations well to the other residents of the Safe Zone, but once they were in the confines of his home later that evening, he bared himself to her.

"I didn't think she'd do somethan' like this, but I should have. She was trying to help us here and I kept knocking her back…", He fumed, marching back and forth in his kitchen as he raked his fingers through his hair, "I should have paid attention-"

"How would you have known she'd help him?", Michonne argued, leaning against the kitchen counter, "She's the last person I would have expected to do something like this Rick, and I barely even said two words to her"

He released a low growl as he stomped past her for a countless time, but she grabbed hold of his bicep, stopping him from going any further. He exhaled tiredly, "I've got a lot on my plate right now-"

"We have a lot on our plate", She corrected, stepping in front of him, "Why do you keep forgetting that I'm on your side?"

"I don't", He frowned, resting his heavy hands on her waist.

"Then take the word 'I' out of your vocabulary. I'm right here Rick, I haven't gone anywhere", She stressed softly, "I'm with you on everything, believe it or not. Even after you kidnapped me, I still-"

"Here we go", He sighed, dropping his head back as he looked up to the ceiling, "I was wondering when you'd bring that up again"

She bit her lip as she tried to stifle a chuckle, "I think I'd like to remind you about that at least once a day"

His head snapped back down, "Only once?"

"Make that once every hour.", She shot back dryly, leading him to further wrap his arms around her as he laughed, nuzzling his face in the crook of her neck.

"That's fine by me", He breathed, his breath tickling her neck. She hoped to have lifted his mood, if only for a moment, but he still went on to say, "I don't know where to start right now"

"You're allowed to feel that way. I've seen you carrying the weight of the world on your shoulders for quite some time, and I think I've you've been doing it long before any of this happened… but it doesn't have to be like that anymore. I told you I want the same things as you and we agreed on that. If you want me to stand by your side as much as I want to be by your side then let me carry that weight with you", Her hand cupped the back of his head, "We start by making sure we're secure here, and so are the other communities. We make sure that everyone is ready to do this again, and then we go after them. We have to, before they catch us off guard again"

Rick huffed as he nodded, "Alright. That's the plan. That's what we're doing."

"It is. We've already been here before… but this time were in a better position than before"

"I know", He kissed the sensitive skin beneath her ear, "...And I know what position I want you in…"

Her eyes widened as she gasped, "Well, Mr Grimes…"

He snickered as he lifted his head to look at her, "I think we went a little off topic there"

"I think the word 'I' needs to be added back into your vocabulary because that was all you"

He gave her one of his charming chuckles as he swept her off her feet and onto the counter, making his intentions even more clear.

She couldn't blame him, nor could she turn him away. They had been so wrapped up with the situation with Carl and Alexandria that they had neglected the romantic side of their relationship. She didn't realise how much she missed his touch until his hands were all over her body, working urgently to remove her clothes, but she had to stop, "Not here. Bedroom"

He growled in frustration but still carried her in what remained to the nearest bedroom on the ground floor. Judith had long fallen asleep after playing with her brother tirelessly, pleased with his return. Carl complained that he barely slept the night before since he was too excited to return home, so with both children asleep they were free to have their way with one another.

Their clothes gathered in a pile beside the bed once they were removed, and Michonne wasted no time mounting her man once he lay down. His eyes combed up and down her torso as he took hold of her waist while she leaned over him with her hands on either side of his head. She caught his lips with hers and excited him with a passionate kiss, one that made him groan in delight. He always took the lead in the bedroom, and while she appreciates the fact that he was a selfless lover, she felt that it was time that he allowed her to lavish some affection on him.

She lowered herself on his rock hard member with ease, and repaid her with a satisfied groan that came from the pit of his stomach. She moved painfully slow, giving herself a chance to get re-acquainted with all the inches he had to offer.

"I have a feeling that this won't last as long as I'd want it to", Rick complained, planting both feet on the bed as he bent his knees.

She smiled at his little joke as she picked up the pace, rolling her hips forward and back with a steady rhythm. Rick bit his bottom lip in response, his eyes locked on the small space between them. She loved when he watched their bodies meet. The glazed over look in his eyes and the way he would hiss a curse word every so often made her own arousal grow, so much that she found herself bouncing on top of in no time.

"Fuck…", He breathed, his hold on her hips tightening. She thought he was just enjoying the efforts she made, but soon enough she was being met with thrust from below.

"Oh… God", Her back arched as her core tingled with delight, feeling as if she couldn't get enough of him. Her fists balled, gathering the sheets so she had something to hold onto as she moved even faster, "Yes, Rick!"

Her man panted below her, still meeting her with hard thrusts that stroked her hot, wet core. His brow was pebbled in a light layer of sweat, his hair sticking to his forehead. Michonne watched him begin to tense and took it as her opportunity to finish him off with a bang. She clenched repeatedly, creating a pulsing sensation around his member. A garage of curse words shot from Rick's mouth, his brows knitted together at the top of his nose. When he was unable to withstand any more pleasure he held her in place while he rammed himself deep within her once last time, his length jerking sporadically as he met his release.

"God, Michonne...", His chest heaved as he peered up at her with confusion, "What was that?"

She grinned down at him as she reached between her legs, her fingers finding her bud, "I'm not done…"

He huffed, replacing her hand with his own, "I'll handle this. It's the least I can do..."

Michonne really didn't have any intention of falling asleep at his home, but after experiencing orgasm after orgasm from a very generous Rick she couldn't even open her eyes, let alone get changed and leave. He didn't make any attempt to move either, so they lay in bed with limbs tangled together until the morning came and she had to sneak out before the children woke up.

The community was an eerie, but beautiful sight in the early hours. The people on watch sat quietly on the watch towers, or patrolled the streets in a leisurely stroll. The occasional chirp from a nearby bird would catch her attention, forcing her to look up at the pink sky. She made a note to watch the sunrise with Rick when they could steal a morning away, but she knew that wouldn't be anytime soon.

It came as no surprise to her that Lucille was missing from her home. She imagined it was the first thing Negan retrieved before leaving, but she was surprised to find the only picture that the two of them had taken together, missing. She picked her brain trying to remember the last thing he said to her before they parted ways, and when the memory finally hit her, she smiled to herself, "This might not be a bad thing after all…"

It took some planning on all sides to gather the communities together in the coming week, but they were able to safely meet at the kingdom. Ezekiel went out of his way to accommodate everyone and even had his people introduce him in a grand fashion, much to Rick's annoyance. Despite the reason for their coming together, there was a buzz in the air that charged Michonne. She felt confident in every single person that surrounded her, especially the people in her unofficial family.

"You think dad would freak out if I let her ride on Shiva's back?", Carl asked with an amused smile as he handed his sister a piece of fruit.

Michonne adjusted the little girl on her hip as she shook her head at the teen, "I would freak out"

He snickered, "Maybe not then"

"I'm gonna' see if they got anythan' to eat in this place", Daryl rasped, slinging his crossbow over his shoulder as he stepped around Carl.

"Where's Rick?", Tyreese quizzed, looking from his sister to Michonne, "What's taking them so long to start?"

"Speak of the devil and he shall appear", Sasha tipped her head towards the nearest building, where Rick stood with Ezekiel, Maggie and Dwight.

Michonne turned to face them, her attention primarily on Rick. He looked comfortable in front of the sea of faces, ready remind everyone how far they've come, and to inspire them to go further. His eyes locked with hers just as he opened his mouth to speak, and he gave her a little confirmation nod that she reciprocated with a warm smile.

He had only said a few words when Judith began to fuss, gearing up to wail through her father's speech, so Michonne began to shake her way around the residents, hoping the walk would distract her.

"This baby...", A woman issued flatly, stepping in front of Michonne as she reached the benches on the edge of the crowd, "She is not very happy, is she?"

Michonne eyed the woman, as she moved Judith to the other side of her hip, "No, afraid not"

"Such a shame.", The woman spoke coldly with a glazed over expression, "We have not met, your name?"

"Michonne", She replied tightly, slightly distracted by the woman's lack of hair on her head and brow.

"I am Alpha", Was the strangers admission, which came with a ghost of a smile. Her dead gaze fell on Judith again when the girl began to wail once more, leading her to offer, "Enjoy this now, it will all end soon"

Michonne's eyebrows sprung up as high as they could as she stared at the women strangely, "What did you say-"

The crowd beside them roared with cheers, causing Judith to jump in fear and Michonne to take her eyes off the woman for only brief moment, but that was all it took for her to disappear out of sight.

 **THE END.**

 **A/N** : I know I haven't updated this for so long (Sorry!) And when I had sat down to get to work on this chapter I was hit with inspiration for a new path for this fic, so I have a sequel all planned out that will be in rotation VERY soon. Also, please don't hate me. Thank you so much for taking the time out to read and review, you angels!


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